


Recovery

by Stellarath



Category: Person of Interest (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, F/F, Slow Burn, maybe? - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-19
Updated: 2016-06-07
Packaged: 2018-06-09 10:52:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 22,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6902857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stellarath/pseuds/Stellarath
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Shaw isn’t doing ISA field work, she’s working as a doctor for them, tending to the injuries of agents like herself. One day, a tall brunette woman comes in...and again and again with mostly the same injury: a shot in the shoulder. Things start to get interesting for Shaw as she learns about who this woman is and what Research is.</p>
<p>AU that starts somewhere in S2.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Just a Graze

Sameen Shaw is first and foremost a trained killer working for the government. But during the days when she wasn’t assigned to any missions, she’s a doctor, treating the injuries of agents like herself. The ISA figured that there was never not a need for doctors, and not wanting her to waste her skill set, they gave her her own office. Shaw didn’t mind it so much. In her heart, she was always a doctor. Ever since her father’s death as a child, being a doctor was her dream.

“So, what’s the prognosis doc?”

“Keep it dry. Change the dressings every 72 hours.” Shaw says, giving the taller woman’s shoulder one last pat before putting her supplies away. The woman smiles sweetly at her. 

“You got it.” The woman takes a step to the door, hand hovering over the handle in consideration before she drops it and turns back to face her. “I read your file.” 

Shaw blinks, waiting for her to continue. 

“And I’m kind of a big fan.” 

Shaw isn’t surprised. Every so often, a rookie would come into her office and either blab away at her about her reputation or cower under her. She was considered to be one of the government’s finest agents, highly regarded among her peers for her ability to assess any situation and make the best choice from it. That made her a dangerous and highly valuable asset.

“Thanks,” is all Shaw says, not really interested in hearing what the other woman had to say. Shaw was used to the fawning but never basked in it. The woman seems almost disappointed by her lack of response. 

“Your track record is flawless. Three years as an operative and you’ve never failed a mission.” 

“Someone’s gotta get the job done.” Shaw says dismissively. 

“That’s not all though. You graduated valedictorian in high school and med school with a perfect GPA.” Root persists.

Shaw narrows her eyes at her. “Yeah, so?” 

“Are you a robot?”

Shaw glowers at the brunette and purses her lips. Usually that tactic was enough to scare people away but not her. Either the woman in front of her didn’t notice or care because she continues talking.

“Not that there’s anything wrong with artificial intelligences. In fact, if a true AI existed, I’m sure I’d get along with her.”

_Her? Weirdo._

“Good one. Haven’t heard that one before.”

Root hums. “I should go. Don’t wanna keep your other patients waiting.” She opens the door and turns her head towards Shaw, grinning, “My name’s Root, by the way. Hope you don’t get sick of seeing my face,” she says before closing the door with a click.

_What the hell is that supposed to mean? And what kind of name is Root?_

She doesn’t see Root again until a week later, shoulder bloody and wound reopened.

“I told you to keep it dry.” Shaw frowns, cleaning the area and working on restitching it.

“Sorry doc, I couldn’t help myself. I guess I just couldn’t wait to see your hands work their magic again.” Root attempts to wink but ends up blinking as she winces when Shaw sticks the needle back through her flesh. “I kind of enjoy this sort of thing.” Root grits through her teeth.

_Is she really hitting on me now?_

“Look...uh,” _What was her name again? Groot? No._ “...Root,” Shaw says slowly, closing the stitches and tossing the needle and gloves out. “I don’t sleep with my patients. Goes against the code of being a doctor.”

Root grins. “Oh, is that what you thought? I’m flattered, Shaw, but really, I appreciate your handiwork. It’s been awhile since I’ve had a good doctor as you.”

Shaw regards her neutrally before redressing her shoulder. That’s when she notices the scars. “You get shot often?”

Root shrugs with her free shoulder. “Can’t exactly avoid it in our line of work.” Shaw nods in agreement, finishing up. “Though I’d say they’re more like grazes than anything.”

“Seriously, Root. Don’t do anything to reopen them again. If I see you back here anytime soon, shoulder bleeding, I’m going to have to put you inpatient care.” Shaw says, crossing her arms. She hated nothing more than patients who ignored her advice. “You’re free to go.”

“I’ll try my best.”

* * *

Root is officially her worst patient. Shaw doesn’t know how the taller woman isn’t dead yet. She figures that Root must have been graced by fortune because it was the sixth time she’s visited within the span of two weeks. Granted, they weren’t for shoulder shots and were for minor cuts and bruises that Shaw was sure Root could have handled herself at home but still. Shaw now understood what Root meant during their first meeting.

“Seriously?”

Root chuckles. “At least the other one’s healed. That has to count for something, right?” 

Shaw rolls her eyes. “Alright, sit.” 

Root happily takes a seat on the exam table and Shaw begins to go through the motions of cleaning and stitching again.

“You must suck at dodging.” Shaw comments.

“I was never good at dodgeball, or any sport. Computers are more of my thing.” Root says happily, swinging her legs back and forth as if she was a child. Shaw’s eye twitches slightly.

“What’s someone like you doing field work then?”

“Believe it or not, I’m pretty good with a gun.” Root smirks. “Or two,” she adds.

Shaw doesn’t reply, focusing on getting Root stitched up and out of the exam room as fast as possible. Normally Shaw would be impressed. What’s hotter than a lady firing two guns? But she she was kind of sick of seeing Root’s face all the time.

Root wasn’t going to let her have her silence apparently. “Someone’s focused. Are you really wanting to get rid of me so soon?”

“You saying you wanna stay in this stuffy hospital? ‘Cause I can admit you right now if that’s what you want. Wouldn’t bother me a bit.”

“Only if _you_ get to be my doctor.” Root says sweetly.

“Not a chance.” Shaw replies, backing away from Root. “Alright, you’re good to go.”

“Thanks, Shaw. I owe you one.”

Before Shaw has a chance to ask, Root is already gone.

The next day, Shaw finds a lone purple envelope sitting on top of her desk with a note inside that read:

_Hope you like pancakes. ;) --Root_

Shaw digs in to find a $100 gift card to IHOP. How the hell did Root know she loved pancakes? It was probably just a lucky guess. Whatever. Shaw wasn’t going to complain. Free food was free food.

* * *

When Shaw finally gets the free time to go out to eat, she brings Cole with her.

“Uh...I didn’t wanna say anything before but I think that girl across from us is staring at you.” Cole whispers to Shaw. Shaw pays him no mind as she continues to stuff pancake after pancake in her mouth. Who cares if some girl was staring at her. “It’s kinda weirding me out Shaw.” Cole nags. “At least look to see if you know her.”

Shaw rolls her eyes and stabs her fork into a pancake and turns her head to the right. She nearly chokes on her food at who she sees, having not seen her in a while.

“Root!?”

Root turns from her laptop with a surprised look. “Oh, hey Shaw. Didn’t see you there. Did you miss me?”

Of course it was Root. It couldn’t have been one of her random hookups. Just when Shaw thought she was free from Root, she just had to reappear to remind Shaw that she wasn’t. Shaw growls. “Bullshit. Cole tells me you were staring.”

Root’s eyes flicker to Cole and he gulps. “Why would I stare? That would be rude.”

“Quit playing games, Root. Why are you here?” Shaw glares, unconsciously digging the fork deeper into the pancake.

“Just a happy coincidence. Funny how fate works, huh?”

“Are you stalking me?”

Root closes her laptop. “No. I just happened to be at the right place at the right time. But it looks like I gotta run. My boss is calling.” Root stands and places a piece of paper in Shaw’s hand. “It was nice seeing you out of the hospital, Shaw. We should have more of these happy coincidences!”

Once Root is gone, Shaw looks at the paper in her hand and finds a number written on it: Root’s number.

“Did you just get her number?” Cole asks with wide eyes.

“No.” Shaw scrunches the paper in her hand and pockets it. “C’mon, let’s go. We gotta meet up with Control for our mission briefing for tonight.”

“Right.”

* * *

_“Gunman at 11 o’clock. Should be smooth sailing from here.”_

“I wouldn’t count on that. You know how these things always are Cole.” Shaw murmurs into her receiver as she shoots the guy at his knees.

“Where to now?”

_“Head into the elevator and type this code in: 574284. It should bypass the security to get into floor B3.”_

“Going down.”

Shaw readies her gun as the elevator stops at the designated floor. The door opens and no one is in sight. “That’s weird. The floor is clear.”

_“Told you. What we’re looking for should be in the room to your left.”_

Shaw frowns, eyes darting everywhere, guard up as she walks through the room slowly. 

_“Just turn on the computer and I’ll handle it from here. Then get out of there as fast as possible.”_

Shaw turns on the computer and multiple windows appear, data flashing through the screen rapidly as Cole hacks into it. A few minutes pass before she hears, “Got it.”

_Click. Click. Click…_

“Drop your weapon!” 

Shaw places it steadily down on the desk. 

“Now, hands up and turn around slowly!”

Shaw does what she’s told with a smirk on her face as she’s greeted with several guns pointed at her. “Hello boys. Hope you weren’t expecting this to be easy.” Before they can react, she pulls out a smoke grenade from her coat and releases it on them. While they’re coughing with their eyes closed, she grabs her gun and shoots them all in the knees before fleeing into the elevator and heading to floor 29.

_“Shaw, are you okay? I suddenly got a bunch of heat readings where you were at.”_

“Peachy. Took the guards down, no sweat. Like I said Cole, it’s never that easy.”

_“Good. Our guy should be in his office. I’m getting a lot of heat signatures on that floor. You can handle it right?”_

“I’ll call you if I need backup.” Shaw replies.

When the elevator door opens, the guards are already taken out. “Hey Cole. Guards are down. Someone else is here.” Shaw says, walking over their bodies and towards their number’s office.

_“Be careful Shaw. I’ll try to get into the security feeds to see who.”_

Shaw enters the office to find it empty. “He’s not here.” Shaw says. A gun cocks from behind her.

“Looking for someone?” a voice says quietly. Shaw turns to disarm him but he’s just as fast as her and blocks her. She attempts to knock him on his legs but he blocks that too. Every move she made was countered. She backs off and points her gun at him, realizing that their combat was similar and it was useless trying to fight...meaning he was a government trained agent. Was he a rogue operative?

“You’re not him.” Shaw states. 

“No. And you’re not just some assassin either,” the man in the suit replies.

“Neither are you. Guessing you’re not his bodyguard since you took all those guys out.”

He smirks. “You can say that I’m a concerned third party.”

“Where is he?” Shaw glares. They circle each other.

“Safe. Why do you want to kill him?”

“None of your business.” Shaw notices him pause and realizes that he’s listening to someone in an earpiece like her. 

“Gotta go.” He goes to shoot at her kneecap but she dodges, the bullet barely grazing her leg, and he disappears.

_“What happened? Did you get our guy?”_

Shaw growls, putting her gun away and limping out of the office. “No. Some guy in a suit already got him away. Control isn’t going to be happy.”

_“At least we destroyed the data. That was our primary objective.”_

“She doesn’t like loose ends.” Shaw wasn’t looking forward to reporting back.

Back at HQ, Control fumes at them. “You let him get away. I’m disappointed Shaw. A first mission failure.”

She looks at Control neutrally, not really caring that her perfect record is tarnished. It just happened to be that way.

“Ma’am,” Cole starts. “We destroyed all of the data. Isn’t that what you wanted?”

Control sighs, irritated. “Yes. But that man is a terrorist. He needed to be killed.”

“We’ll just get him next time Research pops his number out.” Shaw says.

Control purses her lips and folds her hands over her desk. “Next time you encounter the man in the suit, pursue him and do whatever it takes to bring him in.”

* * *

“How’s it looking, doc?” Root asks, smiling. 

“They’re ready to come off.” Shaw retrieves tweezers and scissors from a drawer, doing her best to hide her limp, and dabs alcohol on Root’s shoulder. 

“So, who was that guy you were with yesterday? Boyfriend?”

Shaw almost laughs at Root for the idea which causes her to accidentally press a little harder on Root’s shoulder with the alcohol. Root winces and Shaw feels a little bad but Root was being annoying. “Coworker. And...a friend, I guess.”

Root watches her, looking pleased by her answer--which Shaw doesn’t know _why_ \--but thankfully drops the subject. Shaw works in silence, removing the stitches carefully and bandaging the area once out. Shaw moves to sit at her desk and Root’s eyes follow her. She doesn’t make a move to leave.

“Did you need anything else?” Shaw asks slowly.

“Your leg.”

_Uh, what?_ She wants her leg? Shaw stares at Root.

Root elaborates, “I noticed you place all your weight on one leg when moving. What happened to it?” Root is looking at her with genuine concern and it catches Shaw off guard. How the hell did she notice that? 

“I dodged a bullet. Got grazed during a mission. You should take some lessons on it. It’d do you a lot of good.”

Root smirks. “Are you offering?”

Shaw smirks back. “If it means I get to shoot plastic bullets at you, then yeah.”

Root’s smirk turns into a small pout. “Sick of me already, huh?”

“Gee, what gave you that idea?”

Root looks at her in consideration before saying, “Okay.”

“Huh?”

“You can shoot plastic bullets at me.” Root says, hopping off the exam table and standing in front of her desk. “You have my number right?”

“Unfortunately.”

Root beams. “Great! Ring me when your leg’s healed and we’ll meet at the shooting center.”

Shaw leans forward in her seat. “I’m going to enjoy kicking your ass.”

“We’ll see, Sameen. I think we're past the doctor-patient relationship. Can I call you that?”

“No.”

“Okay, Sam.” Root replies innocently, heading to the door to leave. Shaw rolls her eyes, knowing it was useless to try to argue with Root. “Take care.”


	2. Too Many Questions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shaw and Cole have some new missions.

“Safety first.” Root says, placing goggles over her eyes then over Shaw’s. Suited up and ready to go, they enter the small paintball room. The rules were simple: whoever got hit the most in 10 minutes was the loser. A special sensor tucked in their paintball shirts would keep track of how many times they were hit, so they agreed that leg shots wouldn’t count and that they should only be aiming at the other’s upper body. 

Shaw positions herself on the opposite side of the room of Root behind an obstacle and waits for the signal. Root does the same. She waves at Shaw tauntingly with her paintball pistol, a crooked smile on her face and Shaw wants nothing more than to wipe it off. She couldn’t wait to kick Root’s ass.

A loud beep starts the game and Shaw immediately shoots at Root who quickly hides behind cover. Shaw moves to a bumper when Root fires at her. She pops her head out once the shots stop to see Root moving to a cylinder and Shaw fires in the direction she’s going. Root changes course and sprints towards Shaw while shooting. Shaw wasn’t expecting Root’s aggression and gets hit twice before she makes a dive to a nearby wedge. As Root closes in on her, Shaw takes advantage of Root’s complete exposure and manages to strike her twice back before she takes cover.

Shaw glances at the clock: 4 minutes remaining and they were even. _Time to change that._

“Hey Root.” Shaw calls out.

“Yes, Shaw?” 

_Gotcha._

“I’ll let you win if you buy me a steak tonight.” 

Root scoffs. “Nice try Sameen, but if that’s your way of asking me out to dinner then--”

Root barely reacts in time to dodge a steady flow of incoming paint as Shaw appears from the side and marks her once. Shaw doesn’t let up. Like predator chasing prey, Shaw is on Root’s tail, relentless and not allowing her to escape. Root was fast, and Shaw thinks that if Root was a little more careful, she could dodge any bullet that comes at her.

Suddenly Root swivels to face her and shoots at the floor in front of her. Shaw scores a few more hits in the process but the fresh grounded paint causes her to lose her balance and that was the opening Root needed to fire freely at her. By the time Shaw recovers, the game ends with a loud buzz. The screen displays the winner as Root.

Root smirks at her victoriously and Shaw is sure she can see her own brain with how far back her eyes are rolling. Looks like she was the one who needed dodging lessons. The irony is real.

“Don’t worry, Shaw. I’ll still buy you that steak you wanted.” Root offers her a hand and Shaw begrudgingly takes it.

“You pulled some nice tactics.” Shaw admits. “But you’re careless in your surroundings. You let me distract you and sneak up on you. If this was real, you would have been dead or captured in a heartbeat.”

“Can’t have eyes everywhere.” Root smiles at her, tight-lipped, and Shaw almost thinks there’s a hidden meaning behind those words. They walk silently into the locker room and change and clean themselves of paint as best they can.

“So, dinner at 7?” Root asks, walking into Shaw’s aisle of the locker room in fresh clothes. Her eyes are wide and hopeful.

“Sure. But I’m driving.” Shaw doesn’t know why she’s letting Root into her life so much. Well, it was more like Root planted herself in Shaw’s life and now she’s an annoying weed Shaw can’t get rid of because her roots are buried in too deep. Maybe that’s why her name’s Root?

Root nods, happy. “I’ll text you my address. See you tonight, Sam.”

* * *

Root had a nice loft. It was big, had modern appliances, and in a nice area. But that was pretty much the extent of the good things about it. Root’s sense of decorating was...Shaw has no idea actually. She thought with the way Root held herself, it’d be more refined but this was...something else. From the lava lamp (and other weirdly designed lamps) to the purple shag rug underneath the coffee table to the retro game consoles and other nerd figures in a display rack, not to mention the song Root left playing “Welcome to the Machine,” Shaw felt like she was stepping into a nerdy teenager’s room from the 70s. It was a sharp contrast from Shaw’s preferred minimalist style.

“Ready?” Root asks, emerging from the bathroom. She’s wearing her normal clothes (motor jacket and all) and Shaw’s thankful that Root isn’t treating it like a date.

“About time.” Shaw says, getting up from the couch. Though it’s not like Root was late; Shaw had arrived earlier than she expected to.

Shaw takes them to one of her favorite New York steakhouses. It was fancy but it wasn’t the highest end restaurant. She didn’t want to make Root pay for an expensive meal when Shaw was only saying that as a distraction. They get seated by a window and Shaw orders a light alcoholic drink (can’t get drunk when you’re the driver. She wasn’t going to trust Root with her sports car) while Root opts for water. After sifting through the menu, they tell the waiter their orders and wait for their food.

“What’s a nerd like you doing in the ISA?” _Oops._ She didn’t mean to call Root a nerd out loud. It kinda slipped.

Root doesn’t seem to take offense and wrinkles her nose at her in amusement. “They needed a hacker and I just happened to fit the bill.”

“Cole’s a hacker. He’s pretty good. You two could probably get along with your nerd talk.”

Root only smirks. “And what about you, Sameen? Why are _you_ in the ISA?”

“Dad died in a car crash when I was a kid. I became a doctor. They deemed me unfit and here I am.” Shaw shrugs. “You do anything before this?”

Root pauses for a moment, staring at her reflection in her water in contemplation when she says, “I’m a reformed ex-assassin for hire.”

Wow, ok. This petite, quirky nerd was an _assassin_. It wasn’t easy picturing a murderous and cold-blooded Root. “How’d you get into that business?”

“Playing by the rules was never my style.” Root answers, spinning the straw in her water absentmindedly. 

Shaw looks at her curiously. “And what changed?”

Root smiles at her mysteriously. “I met someone on the Internet. One day she contacted me and said that if I wanted to be in her life or ever meet her, I needed to change. So, here I am, doing my best to be one of the good guys.”

“Girlfriend?” Shaw asks, intrigued.

Root laughs. “No.”

Their food arrives and Shaw digs into her steak ravenously. Root eats her own steak salad daintily. “This is good.” Root compliments.

Shaw swallows and wipes her lips with a napkin and says, grinning, “You should try a full steak next time. It’s better than sex.” 

Root looks at her disbelievingly but doesn’t say anything. When the bill comes, Root pays it in full and Shaw thanks her for the dinner. She drops Root off at her loft and parts ways with her.

* * *

“How’s my favorite doctor been?” Root asks from the doorway, leaning on it with her arms crossed.

“Fine.” Shaw answers from her desk, paying Root no attention and flipping through a manilla folder containing information for her and Cole’s new mission tomorrow. She hadn’t seen Root in a while so she figures she’s there for another wound treatment. Root can wait a bit while she finishes. Apparently Root had other ideas as she places her arms on Shaw's desk and leans over it. Shaw slams the folder shut and eyes Root suspiciously: not a scratch on her. “And looks like you are too. You know doctor’s visits are only meant for the injured? And you’ve already had your biannual checkup. So why are you here?”

“Just wanted to check in on you. We’re friends, aren’t we Sam?”

“Like rabbits and foxes.”

“Cute. I guess that makes me the fox.” Root looks entirely too pleased with her simile and Shaw regrets ever saying it. “I’m here to say goodbye actually. I’ll be going to D.C. for a few days. My boss needs me there.”

“You make it sound like I won’t ever see you again.”

“Why, will you miss me?” Root asks perkily.

Shaw leans back in her chair and folds her hands across her abdomen. “I was just thinking about how great that would’ve been.”

Root releases a small, amused sigh. “What were you reading?”

“My new mission. I’ll be heading to Berlin with Cole tomorrow to investigate a suspected terrorist named Ahnaz Bekhti.”

“Looks like we both have our work cut out for us.”

“Yeah.” Shaw agrees. “Something serious must be going on if you’re being called to the D.C. quarters.”

Root puts a hand to her chin in thought before turning to leave, “I’ll see you in a few.”

* * *

Tracking Bekhti was easy. Although she and Cole ran into a few problems along the way, they were able to apprehend Behkti in an old apartment building with his crew building a dirty bomb. That was evidence enough for Control to greenlight them.

_“Sam, you okay?”_

“Pull the fire alarm and head down to the street.”

_“Um, what are you gonna be doing?”_

Shaw pulls out a knife and replies with, “Getting my bullets back. We were never here, remember?” Static fills the other side of the line and Shaw starts cutting open Behkti’s body, retrieving every single bullet in him. The fire alarm rings and Shaw hears the inhabitants fleeing the building. Once she was sure there were no more bullets left, she rewires the bomb on the table and grabs the detonator. Fixing herself back into civilian clothing, Shaw exits the building and reopens communication with Cole.

“Behkti’s wiring was a bit rough. I fixed it for them.” Shaw says, pretending to not notice Cole on the other side of the street as she briskly walks away from him and the building, fully intending on detonating it when she’s out of range.

_“That’s nice of you. You’re making your own way out. Sure you don’t want some company?_

“Why, you know anybody? I’ll see you when I see you.”

_“I’ll see you tomorrow.”_

“Where?”

_“Back in New York City. Control called. We got another number.”_

Back in New York, Shaw meets up with Cole for coffee to discuss their number.

“You do your research?” Shaw asks, sipping her coffee.

“Yeah. James Mercer. Did four in the corps. A dishonorable discharge. Graduates to the militia movement--”

“Wait. I thought our guy’s name was Phil Daniels.”

“No...I’m pretty sure his name is James Mercer.” Cole says slowly. They look at each other in confusion. 

“Lemme see your number.” Shaw orders. He hands her a newspaper with the numbers _000-05-2904_ written on it. “It looks like we got assigned different numbers, Cole.”

“What? Why would Control do that?”

“Dunno.” Shaw answers impassively, finishing her coffee. “I’m sure she has her reasons. Whatever the case, we should trust Research. I’ll help you out once I’m finished with mine. Shouldn’t take long.”

Cole’s face turns serious. “You ever wonder where Research gets the numbers?”

Shaw thinks about it for a moment before answering with, “No.”

“Why?” he asks immediately.

“Because I don’t work for Research.”

“Did you ever think they could be wrong sometimes?” Shaw doesn’t respond and Cole continues. “Like that guy in San Jose. Aquino. Two years ago. He was...so confused. You remember what he did?”

“I do. Because I’m the one that killed him while you just watched on your little camera.” Shaw says coldly and Cole frowns at her. “I also remember that he was trying to sell designs for a nuclear centrifuge to Hezbollah and you tracked the money trail.” Cole nods, remembering as well. “Research was right about Aquino. Like they’re always right.”

“How can you be so sure that they are never wrong if you have no idea who they even are...or where they get these numbers?” Cole asks adamantly.

“I know exactly where they get those damn numbers from, Cole, and so do you.” Shaw says, enunciating very clearly. “From a dark room somewhere where they hurt people badly. And the reason we don’t ask where Research gets its numbers from is because Research is never wrong.”

“Well, they were this time.”

Shaw stares at him incredulously. “You did something stupid, didn’t you?”

“I called on one of my friends from the agency, asked her to trace the money. Those transfers didn’t come from Hezbollah.” Shaw looks down at the table and shakes her head. She couldn’t believe that Cole would do something so reckless. “They came from the U.S. government. Aquino was doing something covert but he was doing it for us. I called Control. Wilson. I mean, I’ve requested an internal investigation. But I kept you out of it, I promise.”

Shaw sighs and rubs her temples. “When did you do all this?”

“The day before our flight to Berlin.”

The same day that Root was called to D.C. It couldn’t be a coincidence. Something didn’t feel right. The chair squeaks loudly as Shaw stands swiftly. “Just wait for me to finish mine and we’ll get on yours, ok?” 

Cole nods.

* * *

_[Monitoring Asset  
Subject: Potential Analog Interface  
Current location: Washington D.C.]_

_“Sir, everything is proceeding as planned. Cole has his number and so does Shaw. We have them separated.”_

“Good. Anything else to report?”

_“We should be able to remove Cole tonight.”_

“Make sure Shaw stays in the dark. We don’t want to have to lose our best and most loyal operative.”

_“Understood.”_

Root removes her wiretap earpiece, processing what she just heard from Special Counsel’s office. She glances at the only camera in the room and then goes to the nearest street with a camera and pay phone. “Is Shaw in danger?” she asks it.

The camera blinks red, processing her question, and not a moment later the pay phone rings. Root answers it.

_/Yes. Asset Indigo Five Alpha suspects something is wrong. She met with Asset Indigo Five Beta earlier today./_

“Is this why you wanted me here? To hear all this?”

_/Yes./_

Root hangs up and gives the camera one last look. “Thank you.”

* * *

“I really appreciate you coming out to help, Shaw. It didn’t feel right to work on a number without you.”

Shaw nods, watching Cole’s laptop screen when a car alarm chirps on the feed. “Mercer’s on the move.” She cocks her gun. 

Just as she’s about to leave the van, a message suddenly appears on the screen from the terminal window: _It’s a trap. You need to leave. Now._

“What the hell?” Cole exclaims. “Someone’s hacked into my gear!”

Shaw furrows her brows then turns to Cole. “We need to leave, Cole.” She grabs his arm to nudge him out of the door when gunfire hits the outside of the van. “Too late.”

Shaw grabs a smoke grenade and kicks the door open, tossing the grenade out. She shoves Cole out of the van and they run into the building where they were supposed to hack Mercer. Shaw slams the door shut and peers through the window. “They’re heading in. We’re trapped.”

Cole slinks down on the wall and stares at the door. Shaw takes out a spare hand gun and hands it over to Cole. “We’re not dead yet and I’ll be damned if you and I die tonight.” He takes it sullenly. They move away from the door and use whatever they could find (small chairs, table, shelf) and quickly rearrange them as cover. They hear footsteps from right out the door and they brace themselves as a hail of bullets enter the room, hitting their cover.

The doorknob rattles for a brief moment when they start hearing gunfire from outside. Shaw lowers her machine gun and moves to the door cautiously. She opens it to find everyone unconscious. Cole appears by her side. 

Shaw glances around for any sign of life when a man on her right appears with his hands up. The man in the suit. “Shaw…” he starts. She points her gun at him. “Listen. My name is John. I’m here to help.”

She’s about to fire when Cole places his hand on top of her gun and lowers it for her. Shaw gives him a look before turning back to John. “You’re a wanted man, John. I have orders to bring you in.” Shaw says icily.

“And you two are wanted fugitives. Well, Cole is,” he says coolly.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Batman.” Shaw glares.

John smirks at the nickname. “Cole does.”

“You mean this is about Aquino?” Cole asks, disturbed.

John nods in affirmation. “The government doesn’t like you asking too many questions.”

_BANG!_

A flashbang explodes in between them and all three fall to the ground in pain. Everything is white and ringing and in the 20 seconds it takes for Shaw to come to, Root is by her side, helping her up.

“Sorry I’m late. I hope you got my message.”

Shaw groans and sees several new bodies of agents lying around. “Didn't know you were coming. I never thought I’d be glad to see your annoying face.” Shaw mumbles to her.

Cole looks up in awe. “Wait, _you_ hacked into my computer?”

Root gives him a wry smile. “Wasn’t that hard. You should really upgrade your firmware.”

Cole’s eyes go wide in realization as he makes the connection with the girl he and Shaw saw at IHOP a couple months ago. “Oh my god. You’re _Root_. THE infamous hacker Root.”

Root laughs dryly. Shaw looks back and forth between them and says, “Can we skip the nerd talk and get out of here?”

John groans and stands up, coming to. “You have anywhere you can go to?”

Shaw looks at Root who shakes her head. “Sorry sweetie, I can’t take you back to my place. It’s too dangerous for you. You can’t be seen. As far as the ISA is concerned, Cole is gone and agent Shaw is at home asleep, blissfully unaware.” Shaw purses her lips at Root’s new pet name for her. John eyes Root warily.

“We can go to my safe house. A friend of mine is there waiting for us with your new identity, Cole.” John says.

“Are you two coming too?” Cole asks.

“No. This is where we all say our goodbyes.” Root answers.

Cole heaves a heavy sigh and holds out his hand to Shaw. She takes it. “Thanks Shaw. For everything. I owe you my life. I’m sorry for almost getting us killed.” He leans in close to whisper into her ear, “Be careful with Research, Sam,” and leaves with John.

“Let’s get back you home.” Root says. She leads them to her motorbike and hands Shaw a helmet. 

At home and in bed, Shaw realizes she never told Root where she lived.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh...I completely blanked in the first chapter and forgot that Control is usually in DC. I’ve gotten so used to New York lol So let’s just pretend the ISA also has a second, smaller headquarters in NYC where Shaw is stationed at and Control occasionally visits. This will prooobably be the last we see of Cole but now things are in motion and we're going to get to see more of Root's POV in things.
> 
> Thanks for the comments and kudos guys! :D


	3. Partners

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shaw and Root work together on a mission. Root gets jealous.

“How are you handling things?”

Shaw pauses from her typing to spare Root a bored glance. “Fine. Do you just come here to bother me while I’m working?”

“Why not? This room is private, no cameras. It’s the perfect place to talk.”

“Whatever it is you came to talk to me about can wait.” Shaw says, not prying her eyes away from the computer.

Root tilts her head curiously. “You busy?”

“Yeah. I gotta finish this report before I meet up with my boss.” Shaw can see a glint in Root’s eyes from her peripheral vision but doesn’t think much of it. 

“Well it looks like we’re done here then. I’ll see you, Shaw.” After Root leaves, Shaw puts her lab coat away in her closet and heads to Control’s office. 

“Shaw, I’m afraid we have bad news.” Control says grimly.

_Oh boy. Here we go._

“Cole is dead.” 

“Dead?” Shaw feigns surprise.

“Yes. He died a hero detaining his number. I’m sorry, I know you two were close.” Control says regretfully. _What a load of bull._ “But the good news is that we found you a new partner. One of our newer recruits.” Control smiles, folding her arms over her desk.

Shaw grimaces. She didn’t like working with newbies. They always panicked at the worst times. Grice was the only exception. He was her best student. “With all due respect, ma’am, can’t you assign Grice to work with me?”

“I’m afraid not, Shaw. Grice already has a partner, Brooks.”

_Great._

“There she is.” Control says, looking over Shaw’s shoulder. Shaw turns around and sees none other than--

“Ro--”

“Augusta King.” Root interrupts her, grinning forcefully with her hand out. Shaw takes a deep breath, then takes her hand slowly. “It’s so nice to meet you. Shaw, right?”

Shaw nods, looking at Root with wide, livid eyes, but smiling politely at her. “Sameen Shaw.”

“We are going to work so well together.”

* * *

The first thing Shaw does when they reach her office is pin Root against the door. Root’s eyes widen slightly from the unexpected action and impact. Root didn’t think Shaw was going to take to her being her new partner _that_ badly, but then again, Shaw was unpredictable. Shaw’s grip on her collar was strong and it’s so different from the gentleness Root’s used to when Shaw’s tending to her. Root likes it.

Shaw’s face is so close to Root’s and she has to hold back a shudder when she feels Shaw’s hot breath against her skin. “Alright. You’ve got some explaining to do.” Shaw growls.

“You really have no idea what what you’re caught up in do you? Who you’re actually working for.” Root says sincerely.

“Cut to the chase, Root.” Shaw says impatiently.

“The thing you call ‘Research,’ they’re not a person. Those numbers you get aren’t from some sad taxi driver rotting in a cage somewhere.” Shaw looks at her darkly. “It’s from a machine.”

Shaw loosens her grip on Root’s collar and Root relaxes a little. “So, what? The NSA is spying on us? Is that what you’re saying?”

Root nods, “That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

Shaw pauses, contemplating. “...Is it ever wrong?”

Root shakes her head. “She’s never wrong.”

Shaw lets go of Root and takes a seat, staring at her desk. Root watches her sympathetically, knowing that Shaw is coming to terms to the reality of the ISA, that they weren’t as pure and noble as she thought. That’s part of the reason she talked to Shaw in the first place: for her unwavering belief in the cause and the numbers. If anyone can help her find the Machine, it’s Shaw. It’s also a bonus that she likes being around Shaw. It was fun trying to garner a reaction from the always serious Persian woman with her teasing and light flirts.

Shaw’s hands curl into fists. “Then Aquino...Cole...they were framed by the ISA. By Control or Special Counsel.”

“It was Special Counsel. I was there when he ordered the hit on Cole.”

“That’s how you knew where we were?”

“Yes.”

Shaw crosses her arms, looking uncomfortable. “Thanks. For uh, saving mine and Cole’s life.”

Root locks her eyes onto Shaw’s and smiles tenderly. “I had help from the Machine.”

Shaw averts her gaze and clears her throat. “So, where _is_ the Machine?”

Root sighs tiredly, months of searching wearing on her. “That’s what I’ve been trying to find out. She needs our help.”

“Why would a machine need help from humans?” Shaw asks skeptically. 

“A couple months ago, a woman named Kara Stanton uploaded a virus on the Internet to infect the Machine. It’s due to activate in a little more than 3 months from now.”

“Couple months ago? That’s when you joined the ISA.” 

“Aw, you _do_ remember when we first met. I’m touched.” Root puts a hand over her heart for effect.

Shaw rolls her eyes and mutters, “Hard to forget a face like yours.”

Root chuckles. Maybe she was growing on Shaw after all. “The ISA is my best lead to finding Her.”

“What happens when the virus activates?”

Root’s lips curl downward in worry. “Still trying to figure that out. All I know is that it came from a private intelligence company called Decima.”

“Well, it can’t be good.” Shaw taps her fingers on the desk lightly, “What’s your plan?”

“I’m going to set Her free.” Root leans forward over Shaw’s desk and tucks a stray strand of hair from her face behind her ear. “And I’ll need your help, Sameen.”

* * *

“We have a new number.” Root announces, bursting into Shaw’s office. 

“We do? I haven’t gotten anything from Control.” Shaw says, unlocking her gun drawer and pulling out her new Nano, loading ammo into it. Finally, something to do. After Cole’s “death,” Control thought it would be a good idea to give Shaw a few days off from numbers, which Control apparently cut short. Not that Shaw was complaining. She’s been itching for some action.

“Not Control.” Root smiles sheepishly. “From Her.”

Shaw places the now fully loaded gun back down on her desk. “The Machine sent you a number?” 

“Mmhm. She likes to send me on missions when the boys are busy with another number.” Root says, squeezing herself into the space next to Shaw to type into the computer.

Shaw rolls her chair back a few inches to create some space between them but it just gives her a nice view of Root’s ass in form fitting leather pants. Catching herself checking Root out, Shaw immediately scoots back in and now Root’s hair is tickling her face. Root smells like apples and it disturbs her how pleasing she finds it.

She must have tuned Root out because Root is looking at her expectantly. Damn it. Why did Root have to have a nice ass? “The...boys?” Shaw speaks hesitantly.

Root sighs. “You weren’t listening, were you?”

Shaw doesn’t reply and Root re-explains that their number is a woman named Kelly Lin, an event planner hosting a museum exhibition and that they were to attend the event tonight to investigate.

“This doesn’t sound like a threat to national security.” Shaw remarks.

“It’s not. The Machine has a list of relevant and irrelevant numbers. Relevant being a threat to national security and irrelevant, well, not.” Root goes off in a happy and animated tangent in the complicated algorithms involved in the task and blah blah blah. Shaw tunes her out again.

“So why did the Machine send you an irrelevant number again?” Shaw asks after Root finishes, trying to wrap her mind around all this technobabble.

“Because She wants us to save them. Granted, not all of them are victims; some are perpetrators. We just have to wait and find out.”

“Right…” Shaw pretends to understand. “You said something about ‘the boys being busy with another number.’ Who else knows about the Machine?”

“John. And his...employer.” Root frowns when she says “employer.”

“You don’t sound like you’re friends.” Shaw observes.

“You can say that we had a rocky start. I...kind of kidnapped his boss to force him to tell me the Machine’s whereabouts.” Root reveals a bit reluctantly.

“No wonder he was looking at you like you were some dangerous psycho.” Shaw smirks.

Root folds her arms over her chest, seemingly bothered. Shaw didn’t know why Root was getting so worked up about it. “Like I said, Sameen, I’m a new woman. That was months ago. The Machine didn’t appreciate me traumatizing Her father but She saw something redeemable in me. I don’t want to prove Her wrong.”

“Ok. I get it.” Shaw knew a thing or two about that. “What’s the game plan?”

Root smirks. “I’m so glad you asked. We’ll be going as a couple--”

Shaw nearly chokes on her own spit and she stands abruptly. “What!?”

Root’s smirk turns into a grin, “Well, since the Machine sent the number to _me_ , it was supposed to be a solo mission. The Machine already RSVP’d for me but since we’re supposed to be partners, I took some liberties to make you my plus-one.”

“Can’t you just hack my name into their guest list?” Shaw protests.

“I could but where’s the fun in that?” Root saunters off to the door. “I’ll pick you up at 6. Make sure to wear something fancy.”

“Wait, you never told me the plan--” _Click_. Shaw sighs. She’s not looking forward to this first mission with Root. There better be some booze.

* * *

Root arrives exactly at 6 and when she sees Shaw, she has to force herself not to stare at Shaw’s cleavage. Well, stare _obviously_ anyway. She never imagined Shaw to wear anything but black--seeing as all the outfits she’s ever seen Shaw in were black--but Shaw looked really good in that white dress.

She must have failed because Shaw says, “What?”

Root smiles innocently. “Nothing.”

“Can we go now? The invitation advised us not to be late.” Shaw pushes past Root to get into the driver’s seat of Root’s car and Root just laughs airily as she enters the passenger’s side. She hands Shaw her keys and they set forth to the museum.

Once there, Shaw points out two familiar faces among the crowd. “Guess your Machine thought it’d be a good idea for them to work on the number too. The guy in the glasses, he’s the one you kidnapped?”

Root nods and she tilts her head towards a camera in the room and glares at it. _You really want us to work together, don’t you?_

John and Harold spot them and they walk over to them cautiously. “Didn’t expect to see you here, Shaw.” John greets. “And...Root.” He adds disdainfully. 

Root forces out a smile. Harold eyes her cautiously.

“How’s Cole?” Shaw asks.

“He’s fine. Living a new life in England.” John reassures. Shaw nods, satisfied.

Root grabs Shaw’s arm, preparing to leave, “Hate to cut this reunion short but we have a number to work on.”

“The Machine sent you this number?” Harold asks in surprise.

“She sends me plenty of numbers, Harold.” Root crinkles her nose at him.

“Why would it do that?” Harold looks at her with wide eyes, his glasses magnifying them to an owl-like size.

“Maybe you should ask Her.” Root sasses, knowing that the Machine doesn’t talk to Harold like She does for her. Harold frowns.

Shaw coughs, breaking the tension and attempting to tug her arm away from Root. “I’m gonna go look for the watered-down booze I was promised.”

“Great idea, sweetie. I’ll come with.” Root waves them goodbye and once they were out of sight, Shaw breaks her arm free from Root’s hold and grabs a glass of champagne from a server. Root watches the crowd in boredom and she notices a man choking on something nearby. Shaw is already on the scene and slaps the man’s back, freeing him from whatever was stuck in his throat. Root sees Kelly approaching Shaw.

“That was an impressive move,” Kelly compliments. “Saved me from having to get paramedics in here.”

Shaw smiles, “Right place, right time.”

“Do you know who he was?” Kelly lifts her brows and grins. “Warren Zim, big-time investment banker. Think, that whole empire down the drain.”

“From one cunning shellfish.” Shaw replies, grinning back. “You know, you have a beautiful accent and I have an ear for it, but I can’t place it. Where are you from originally?” Root feels a spark of irritation ignite from within her. 

As Kelly opens her mouth to respond, Root steps in and places a hand on Shaw’s shoulder. “There you are, sweetie.” Root interrupts, putting a strong emphasis on ‘sweetie.’ “Who’s this?” She smiles at Kelly politely.

“Kelly Lin. Event planner. Pleasure.”

“Augusta King. I see you’ve met my girlfriend.” Root beams.

“Yes, she’s lovely. You’re quite lucky. But I should get back to work. Enjoy your evening, ladies.” She bows her head and walks away.

Shaw looks at Root incredulously and nonchalantly swats Root’s hand away from her shoulder. “What the hell was that? I was just about to get some background info on her.”

“We’re supposed to be a couple, remember?” Shaw rolls her eyes. Root cocks her head at Shaw, “Besides, it’s nothing we don’t already know, Sameen.”

Shaw scoffs. “Kelly’s good in this crowd. Charming, casually evasive. Who’d want to put a bull’s-eye on her?”

“Slating her as the victim already? Did her charm convince you of that?” Root says sardonically. Shaw looks taken aback by her response and Root smirks. 

Just then, the lights go out and Kelly’s voice echoes through the speakers, “Everyone. Everyone, there seems to be a problem. Please stay where you are until the lights--”

The crowd screams as small explosions erupt and fog wafts into the air.

“Hey, stop!” a guard calls out. They turn their heads to see someone knocking the guard out and stealing a painting. Shaw immediately chases after them and Root attempts to follow but is unable to catch up in her heels. Yet another remarkable talent of Shaw’s, Root notes, running and doing stunts perfectly in heels.

Giving up, Root decides to check under the tables for any clues and finds a pink handbag with a tablet. _Bingo_. She scans it for any information that could be useful. Finding none, she puts it back in the purse and takes it with her outside, where she bumps into a disheveled Shaw who was aggressively tunneling in her direction. She nearly falls over but Shaw catches her and brings her close. Even though it’s raining and they’re soaked, Root doesn’t feel cold thanks to Shaw’s body heat. 

“You were right, Root. Kelly’s the perpetrator, she stole the painting.” Shaw pants out.

Root shakes her head. “The Machine only sends us numbers of people who are involved or going to be involved in violent crimes. Stealing a painting hardly counts as that and she didn’t kill the guard either.”

“Then that just means she’ll kill next time.” Shaw reasons, moving her hair from her face. With Shaw’s hair out of the way, Root notices a bruise forming on the other woman’s cheek and Root’s hand instinctively shoots up to caress Shaw’s face gently.

“Hate to interrupt this mildly erotic moment, ladies,” John starts, he and Finch appearing by their side. Shaw backs away from Root in a startle. Root crosses her arms, hugging herself in an attempt to replace Shaw’s warmth and she notices Shaw looking at her weirdly. “But I couldn’t help but overhear you talking about our number getting away with theft. Know something we don’t?”

_Ring. Ring. Ring._

They turn their heads to see a nearby pay phone ringing. Root and Harold give each other a look before Harold moves to take it. He returns to them a moment later, unhappy.

“It seems the Machine wants us to work together, Ms. Groves.”

Shaw raises an eyebrow at her when Harold calls her “Ms. Groves” and Root shrugs at her. “Of course She does, Harry.”

“I hardly think I should trust you.” Harold states.

“You don’t need to.” Root replies. “Trust Her.” She takes out the tablet and waves it at Harold. “I found this in Kelly’s purse.”

“Yes, well, let’s move to a more private location. Here,” Harold hands them a spare umbrella and Shaw takes it, unfolding it and putting it over her and Root. They reach his car and he pulls out spare towels for the both of them to dry with before entering,.

Root gives Harold the tablet. “I didn’t find anything useful inside but maybe the GPS can tell us something.”

“If we’re trying to track her down, it will likely be someplace she frequents.” Harold agrees, syncing the tablet onto his laptop to trace Kelly’s tracks. 

“There, down on Pearl Street.” John points at the screen.

“A bar called the Purloined Letter. That’s appropriate.” Harold remarks. “Let’s go see who Kelly meets for drinks.”

* * *

After tracking Kelly down, interrogating her, and discovering that she is in fact the victim along with her daughter, the four concoct a plan to free Kelly from her child’s captors. The plan was to finish Kelly’s final job of stealing the Gutenberg Bible and cornering her “employer” once she hands it to him. Then, John was to rescue her daughter overseas while the Interpol agent chasing Kelly was shown the truth of the situation.

That’s how Shaw found herself breaking into Symmetric Security Solutions with Kelly.

_“Don’t forget to give each finger a good lick before you scan them.”_ Shaw hears Root instruct in an annoyingly overly happy tone over the com. 

“Excuse me?” Shaw says, voice clipped. She can hear Root trying to muffle a giggle. “Something funny, Root?”

_“Ms. Groves, you should really be taking this more seriously.”_ Finch scolds. _“Saliva will simulate sweat and fake out the body heat feature, Ms. Shaw.”_

Shaw shakes her head in displeasure and licks each finger before placing it under the scanner. The door unlocks and they head in.

_“Ms. Shaw, I created a 3 minute surveillance loop on the camera feed. The rest is up to you.”_

“Your guy is sure his computer trick killed the motion sensors?” Kelly asks.

“Yeah. Something about turning up ambient air temperature to match our skin temperatures.” Shaw answers.

“Let’s hope he’s right.”

Shaw drops her bag and begins taking off her outer shirt, sweating. Kelly follows suit. “Damn, it’s hot in here.” Shaw notes.

_“I don’t think that’s entirely Harold’s doing. It’d be hot anywhere you go in that tank top of yours.”_ Root comments and Shaw can hear the wink in her voice. Kelly gives Shaw an uncomfortable glance.

“Wait, can you see us right now? I thought Finch made a video loop.”

_“He did. For them._ I _can see you in real time.”_

Shaw internally groans. Root’s flirting was relentless today. “You can drop the couple act, Root, now that Kelly knows who we are.”

_“Ms. Groves, they only have 3 minutes. I ask that you stop bothering them and allow them to concentrate on their task. Did you finish locating our Czech friends for Mr. Reese?”_

_“Harry, I--”_ Shaw closes the line, not wanting to hear them bicker and gives Kelly the ‘go.’

* * *

“How was that for a first mission together?” Root smiles, settling herself on top of Shaw’s desk.

“It’s a nice change. Helping people out instead of killing them.” Shaw thinks back to Kelly and the look she had on her face, happy and emotional after reuniting with her daughter and being free from a life of forced crime. “I can get used to that.”

Root stares at her face and Shaw remembers the bruise on her cheek and how gently Root caressed her face a few nights ago. Shaw looks to the side. “It’s healing. Doesn’t hurt anymore.”

Root plops off her desk. “You wanna get lunch?” 

“Sure, but you’re paying.” Shaw stands and puts on her coat.

“Am I just your lunch box, Sameen?” Root asks jokingly. Now that Shaw thought about it, she only ever went anywhere with Root when there was free food involved--either by Root paying or it just happened to be offered.

“Alright, I’ll pay for us this time.”

“That’s nice of you.” Root’s gaze lingers on her for a moment before she offers Shaw her car keys which Shaw takes gratefully.

Maybe Root _is_ starting to grow on her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shaw was totally flirting with that chick in the episode and I really enjoy jealous Root. Now that they’ll be working together 90% of the time, I wanted to write some of my favorite missions if Root and Shaw were in it together. Like when Root wore the girl scout outfit. Or the wedding dress. Yeah. They’ll probably be in this before shit starts going down. *X-files theme*


	4. Scout's Honor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Root and Shaw go camping.

“What’s with the outfit?” Shaw gasps out once the piece of sandwich lodged in her throat goes down. Root’s hands continue massaging her back despite the offending piece of food being gone. Shaw blames Root. She wouldn’t have choked if Root hadn’t come in wearing a girl scouts outfit. It was the most ridiculous thing Shaw’s ever seen.

“New number. How’s your sales pitch?” 

Shaw involuntarily lets out a sigh as Root’s hands glide across her back. Shaw felt a million times better as her muscles begin to relax. Damn, was Root good with her hands, but a nice massage wasn’t going to get her to wear that outfit. “Oh no. I am _not_ wearing that.” 

“Could use some work.” Root comments, nodding to herself and completely ignoring Shaw’s objection. 

Shaw scowls. “Root…” she warns.

“Do you really want me to take this one on my own, Sam?” Shaw tilts her head back to see Root sporting a small pout.

Shaw rolls her eyes. “Fine,” she concedes reluctantly. Root instantly perks up and goes to show Shaw their number: a woman named Roxanne Leon, camp counselor of a local girl scouts group and apparently a total hippie.

“Do you like camping?”

Shaw’s blood goes cold. Oh God she was going to be surrounded by a bunch of children in the middle of nowhere. With Root. “Is it too late to back out of this if I say I’m allergic to nature?”

Root laughs and puts a hand on her hip. “You don’t have any allergies. Besides, it could be fun.”

“You said that about the last two missions and they were about as fun as watching paint dry.” Shaw deadpans.

“You mean you don’t like gathering around a campfire singing kumbaya, eating s'mores, and sharing scary stories?

Shaw folds her hands over her face and stares Root in the eye. “No.”

The corner of Root’s lips twitches up into a small smirk. “Well, at least there’s free food.” She circles back around to the front of Shaw’s desk and tears a piece of Shaw’s sandwich off and plops it in her mouth. Shaw looks at her in horror, as if Root had just committed the most atrocious crime in history and Shaw gathers the sandwich close to her chest protectively. Ever since they started working closely together, Root’s become more bold in her actions whenever it came to Shaw.

But food is where Shaw draws the line. “Root, if you ever steal my food again, I will chain you up in a dark basement somewhere far, far away.”

“Ooh, sounds exciting.” Root leans over with a napkin and wipes the corner of Shaw’s lips. Root’s voice lowers, “I’ll even let you use my fuzzy cuffs.”

Shaw bares her teeth at Root, “I prefer good old, cold steel.”

They stare at each other for a few moments, unwilling to break contact, before Root backs away with a smile. She takes out a spare girl scouts uniform for Shaw from her bag and leaves it on a chair. “Put this on when you’re ready and meet me outside.”

* * *

“Listen up girls! Today, we have two new volunteer camp counselors for the weekend. I’d like you all to give a warm welcome to Ms. Shaw and Ms. King!” Roxanne announces.

Shaw scans the cheerful faces of girls neutrally while Root openly waves at them. The girls giggle and fawn over Root and Root seems to be enjoying every bit of it. “I think they like me,” Root whispers to Shaw, amused.

“They like you because you’re pretty.” Shaw offhandedly replies, not realizing what she just admitted to until it’s too late. Root is grinning wildly at her and Shaw scowls at the trees, which are now just turning various shades of yellow and orange.

“You think I’m pretty, Sameen?”

A girl approaches them and saves Shaw from having to reply, “Ms. King! We wanted to know how you get your hair so nice and curly like that!”

Another girl joins in, “Yeah, you’re sooo pretty! My hair always frizzes.” Soon, Root is swarmed with girls asking her questions about herself and Shaw extracts herself from the vicinity and goes to talk to Roxanne, who is going through a checklist of activities for the day.

“How long you been working here?” Shaw asks.

“Few years. I really love working with the kids and showing them how beautiful nature is. Especially in this techno age.” She looks up from the clipboard and notices the attention Root’s getting. “I see they’ve taken a liking to Ms. King.”

“Yeah.” Shaw nods. “This is a beautiful place. I can see why you’d want to show them.”

Roxanne gives her a small smile and hands Shaw the activity list. “Here are all the things we should be doing today. Can you pass it on to Ms. King?”

“Sure.” Roxanne excuses herself and Shaw goes back to Root and hands her the list. 

Root skims through it and clears her throat, “Okay girls. The first activity of the day is horseback riding! Who here has ridden a horse?” A few hands raise. “I see a few of you have, that’s good. For anyone who doesn’t, partner up with someone who does and we can all ride together.” Root begins to lead them to the horse cages when she notices that Shaw isn’t following. 

“Shaw, you coming?”

Shaw purses her lips, not ready to admit that she couldn’t ride a horse. She had no idea that Root even could! “You take this activity, I got the next one. I can do some recon while you’re at it.”

Root turns back around to grab Shaw’s arm and drags her with them. She whispers into her ear, “I can’t let you opt out of activities, sweetie.”

“Root,” Shaw grits through her teeth, “I can’t ride a horse.”

Root pauses in her step for a moment before resuming her pace, “That’s perfect. We can lead the charge.”

“If I fall off, it’s your fault.”

“Trust me.”

When they reach the horses, Root goes on to demonstrate how to climb on one and what to do with the reigns. “Now, for those of you who don’t know how to ride, your partner will help you up and you'll be holding onto them like this.” Shaw takes Root’s outstretched hand and is lifted to the spot behind Root. “Wrap your arms around my waist.” Root says softly. Shaw hesitantly obeys Root’s command and the horse begins galloping lightly around the girl scouts. The scouts “ooh” and “aah” at their demonstration. Root stops the horse and Shaw climbs off of it, immediately crossing her arms. Root instructs the girls to try it out themselves and they do so happily. Shaw didn’t expect Root to be so good with kids.

Root walks over to Shaw and brushes Shaw’s hair out of her face, “See, you didn’t fall.”

For the rest of the day, Root's scent lingers and floods Shaw's senses. She thinks she’s going to go insane.

* * *

Dusk falls and everyone is gathered around the campfire, roasting marshmallows for s’mores. 

“Oh no, we ran out of graham crackers!” Roxanne exclaims, passing the last cracker to a kid which left Root and Shaw crackerless.

“It’s ok, I got it.” Shaw volunteers, heading into a cabin and picking out a random box of graham crackers for her and Root to share. Shaw hands Root the box and Root smiles at her appreciatively. 

“Huh.” Shaw examines the s’more in her hand, “These are way better than the last time I remember.”

Root hums in agreement, mouth currently filled with s’mores. It was kind of endearing how innocent and content Root looked right now. The ease at which that thought came kind of disturbed Shaw.

“Who wants to hear a scary story?” the second counselor, Judith (who was mysteriously gone all day), asks. “Me!” the girls shout out.

As Judith tells the story (with the girls squealing in fear when it got to the “scary” parts), Shaw became progressively hungrier. She couldn’t seem to stop eating the s’mores and apparently Root was in the same position. 

“The scientists began to panic as the two teenagers released all the scary monsters in the world at them! From vampires to werewolves, ghosts, clowns, and other unspeakable horrors! If the boy teen wasn’t sacrificed by morning, the ancient ones would rise from the Earth and destroy all of humanity!” Judith shines the flashlight dramatically over her face.

Root begins giggling and oh no, Shaw can feel herself starting to too! Judith glares at them. “I’m sorry,” Root snorts. “But I can’t believe how incompetent and lax these scientists are. I mean, seriously? You would think they’d have a contingency plan with how long they’d been doing this. Then again, their lab _is_ underneath the cabin.” 

Shaw bites the inside of her cheek and covers her mouth in a futile attempt to cease her laughter. Who knew that Root was such a critic to silly horror stories?

“Ok, kids. I think it’s time to go to bed.” Roxanne says unhappily.

“But what if the monsters get us in the cabin!” a girl cries. Judith and Roxanne reassure the kids that the story was fake and would never happen and lead them into their cabins.

“I’m pretty sure that story wasn’t age appropriate.” Root says through her giggles. Shaw agrees. “God, Shaw, what is wrong with us?”

Shaw grabs the flashlight Judith abandoned and shines it onto Root. Her pupils are dilated and her eyes bloodshot. _Oh shit._ Shaw looks at the box of graham crackers and sniffs them.

“Root. We’re high.” Why didn’t she notice it before? Root bursts into laughter and Shaw joins her, unable to hold it in anymore. All this laughter, it was so unfamiliar to her. “I think I know why our number’s in trouble now.” She’s seen this before many times. Just your typical drug dealers using innocent children to make them a profit until one of them betrays the other. Shaw wheezes out. “We need to find her before it’s too late.”

They wobble up and head back to the cabin. Not seeing the counselors anywhere, they arm themselves with their guns and backpacks and head into the woods together.

“What if we _are_ just sacrificial lambs to appease some Gods?” Root suddenly asks, stopping in her tracks. “Are people really worth saving?” She turns to face Shaw, eyes wide and glistening. “What if I was right? What if we really are just bad code?”

“You’re not making any sense.”

“The Machine,” Root says slowly. “She’s so perfect, rational, and beautiful by design but people…” Root takes a long pause, looking increasingly distressed as she ponders. “People are dumb and selfish.”

Shaw frowns, an uncomfortable feeling rising in her, “Ok, Root, you’re thinking too much.”

Root drops to her knees as tears begin to fall. “I don’t want to be right, Sam.”

Shaw drops straight to Root’s side and places a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Root, you’re starting to dissociate. We had a lot of those graham crackers but I don’t think I had as much as you. Just look at me and focus, ok?”

Root nods and looks up at Shaw. They stare at each other for a few moments, Root calming down, until they hear a rustling nearby. “Stay here,” Shaw orders, running in the direction the sound came from when she bumps into a bleeding Roxanne. 

“She tried to kill me!” Roxanne cries to Shaw in a panic. 

Shaw grabs the first aid kit from her bag and takes out a compress, applying it to Roxanne’s side. “Keep the pressure on and don’t move. I’ll be back.”

The next thing Shaw knows is that she’s on her back with Judith on top of her trying to wrestle the gun out of her hand. The gun goes off in the struggle and Shaw’s heart momentarily stops beating when she hears an unmistakable yelp of pain coming from Root. A feeling of dread creeps up on her. _Is this what being scared feels like?_ She realizes Judith is still reaching for the gun, so Shaw refocuses and shoves Judith off of her. Using the butt of the gun, Shaw knocks the perpetrator out and goes over to Root with the med kit.

“I told you to stay put!” Shaw breathes out heavily, grabbing another compress and applying it to Root’s shoulder where she got hit.

“I was worried. And...” Root bites her bottom lip, “I didn’t want to be alone.”

Shaw sighs. “You’re right. I shouldn’t have left you in this state.”

“Did you save Roxanne?”

“She’ll live. We should probably call the cops and get out of here.”

* * *

“I’m never going camping again.” Shaw comments. “Worst experience of my life.”

“Agreed.”

A comfortable silence falls between them as they walk through Central Park. Shaw was right, the walk was a good idea. Root already felt her mind ease of the things from the day before. Plus, it was a beautiful day out and what better way to spend their off?

“Hey Root, take a look.”

Root looks in the direction Shaw’s pointing in and there, in the distance, is Harold and John with Bear and two familiar people having a picnic. As they approach, Bear takes a defensive position over Harold and growls at her.

“Bear, stil.” Reese commands and Bear goes back to his relaxing position. 

“To what do we owe the pleasure, Ms. Groves, Ms. Shaw?” Harold greets.

“Just taking a walk on a beautiful day, Harry.”

“Ain’t this the woman who kidnapped you, Finch?” Carter asks.

“Yeah, we should lock her up right now.” Fusco agrees. “We’ve been looking months for you.”

“Woah, woah, you are not laying a hand on Root.” Shaw moves in front of Root, defending her. Root feels a tug in her heartstrings. It’s the first time anyone’s ever defended her since Hanna. “Whatever bad blood you had with her before, forget about it. She’s a different person now.”

Carter and Fusco give each other a disbelieving look before turning to Harold. “I’m inclined to agree with Ms. Shaw,” Harold says. “Although I don’t trust her fully, she _has_ changed. At the very least, she won’t kill me.”

Root gives him a wry smile. Typical, suspicious Harold. One day he was going to need to trust her. And that day was coming up faster than he realizes.

“Care to join us for a picnic?” John offers.

Shaw looks like she really wants to and Root gives her a nod. They sit and Bear walks over to Root cautiously, sniffing her. She holds out a hand to him and he licks it. Uninterested, he moves on to Shaw who pets him animatedly. “Hey buddy. Nice to meet you. You’re a good dog, aren’t you?” 

A small smile tugs on Root’s lips as she watches Shaw interact with Bear. It’s the happiest Root’s ever seen Shaw and it makes Root’s heart flutter and ache with a longing she didn’t know she had. Root hopes she can make Shaw smile like that one day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I looked up a bunch of activities girl scouts do while camping and horseback riding was one of them...and after 5x06 who doesn’t love Root on a horse? Did anyone catch the story Judith was telling? Hint: it’s a horror movie Amy Acker’s in ;) But a more PG-13 version. 
> 
> Shout out to my blazing gf for the idea looool (there’s actually weed called girl scout’s cookies)


	5. Growing Trust

Shaw was beginning to think the Machine had some sort of roleplaying fetish for Root. Over the course of several weeks, Root’s been a maid, doctor, lawyer, personal assistant, and a flight attendant. Now she’s an entertainer for children’s birthday parties, which unfortunately Shaw was too. She never pictured spending a Friday afternoon in a mildly surprised looking bat costume at a children's party with Root in a bear costume, but that’s good old Suburbia for you. 

Shaw was enjoying watching Root tell bad jokes to the kids when Root comes up to her with the mic, “Keep them busy. Our number’s on the move.”

Shaw looks awkwardly at the kids and then at the mic in her hand.

“Sing something!” a kid yells out. The others cheer at the suggestion. _What do kids even listen to?_ Shaw is glad that Root isn't there to hear her (or so she thought) when she finally picks out a Disney song to sing.

* * *

“Why don't you ever sing for me like that?” Root asks, stripping out of the bear costume.

“You heard that?” Shaw exclaims.

Root smiles. “You have a lovely voice Sameen.” But thankfully that's all Root says about it before she tells Shaw that Control wants to see them.

“I’ve been told from higher up that Research has been compromised.” Control begins darkly. “At first I thought you and King were getting sloppy, always arriving at the scene when the damage--albeit minimal--has already been done.”

Control takes a deep breath, “But in actuality the numbers we've been receiving have been delayed.” Root shoots a worried glance in Shaw’s direction. “They’re investigating but we will continue proceeding as normal. Dismissed.”

“Well that explains why everything's been so screwed up the past month.” Shaw says back at her office. “Did you know?”

“I did notice that the Machine’s been acting a little off: a few glitches here and there.” Root gathers her things. “The good news is that I managed to figure out what the virus does last night.” She holds the door open for Shaw. “I think it’s time we pay the boys a visit.”

Root takes them to the 2nd floor of an abandoned public library where they stand in front of a padlocked gate. They see Bear’s head pop up as he catches their scent and walks over to them. 

“Bear? Where are you going?” Finch calls out. Bear barks in an answer and paws at the gate. 

Shaw kneels to Bear’s eye-level and smiles. “Hey buddy. I missed you too.”

“Oh my.” Shaw stands back up at the sound of Finch’s voice. Finch stares at them, wide-eyed. “How did you find this location?”

Root rolls her eyes. “The Machine told me. Can you let us in? We have a lot to talk about.”

“I think I would be more comfortable keeping myself locked in.” Finch says slowly.

Root sighs, frustrated. “You still don’t trust me?” Finch doesn’t move. “Fine. Have it your way.” Root leans against the wall. “In a little over a month from now, at midnight, when the virus reaches zero, a certain pay phone will ring with the most important call in history. But you already knew that, didn’t you?” Finch continues to watch them, mute. “And Decima knows too.” 

Root moves to stand as close to the gate as possible, directly in front of Harold. “They’re trying to crash Her, Harold. Trigger a hard reset. When that happens, the Machine will call a pay phone. That’s what you coded it to do in the first place, didn’t you, Harold?” Harold glances away. Root’s voice becomes more desperate, “Whoever answers that call will have full administrative access. Ask any question, get any answer. The world’s secrets laid bare. Decima doesn’t want to destroy your Machine, they want to control Her.”

“I don’t see why you’re telling me something I supposedly already know, Ms. Groves.” Harold finally says.

“Don’t you see? All these missions we’ve run into each other in, forced to work together in, is because the Machine wanted us to. We have to work together and save Her--free Her before Decima gets to Her while we still have time.”

Harold purses his lips. Root grabs onto the wires of the gate and says slowly, “Where is She, Harry?” 

“I don’t know. But I know someone who does.” He locks eyes with Shaw. “Someone you know very well, Ms. Shaw.”

“Control.” Shaw concludes. It made sense. 

Root backs off from the gate and laughs airily, shaking her head. “And here I thought she was just another government lackey, following orders from someone higher to pass the numbers onto us. But the answers to all my questions have been right in front of me this whole time.” She tilts her head at Shaw, smiling cat-like. “The ISA really was my best lead. Thanks, Harry.”

Root begins to leave but Shaw grabs her arm and stops her. “You’re not going to do something stupid, are you? Like kidnap Control and interrogate her?”

Root avoids making eye contact with her. “Of course not--” 

Shaw tugs at Root to force the taller woman to look at her. “We don’t do things like that, Root.”

“I’m not just going to sit here and wait while--”

“Yes you are.” Shaw cuts her off and cuffs their hands together. Root looks at her as if she’s just been betrayed. “You said that when the virus hits zero, the Machine will call a pay phone. We just have to find which one and answer it before anyone else does so we can ask it where it’s at. That shouldn’t be hard if Finch knows which one it is, right?” She turns her head to Finch. He nods.

Root looks down, upset. “Decima won’t stop until they find Her. They’ll be crawling all over the city at every pay phone.”

“We’ll take them out when the time comes.” Shaw says confidently. “Until then, we wait.”

John comes in then, sweaty and blood-stained. He blinks at them. “Ladies,” he greets. “Did I miss something?”

“We were just leaving.” Shaw answers.

* * *

They’re at Root’s loft when Shaw finally takes the cuffs off but Shaw doesn’t leave. Shaw places her stuff down besides the couch and gets comfortable. Root rubs her sore wrists and takes a seat next to Shaw.

“I’m not leaving until I know for sure you won’t sneak out in the middle of the night and get yourself in trouble.” Shaw states.

Root’s eyes dart to Shaw’s bag and the relaxed position Shaw’s in. “Wanna move in then?” Root asks, completely serious but Shaw doesn’t seem to notice.

“Only if you cook for me.” Shaw says.

“I can make lasagna.” Root suggests, not sure if Shaw was serious.

“Who do I look like to you, Garfield?” Shaw smirks. Root smiles and drops the subject, feeling a little disappointed.

“I promise I won’t do anything.” Root says. Shaw looks her in the eyes, searching for any sign of her lying, but Root wasn’t going to lie to Shaw now. “I’ll wait until zero day.” Root hopes her voice and eyes conveyed the sincerity that Shaw needed.

“Ok.” Shaw replies, satisfied.

“You’re welcome to stay here.” Root offers a little quickly, awkwardly. “The couch turns into a bed. You can take that--or I can, and you can have my bed.” Wow, if Root didn’t think she was a hopeless romantic before, she definitely did now. Inviting Shaw to move in, offering to cook for her, and desperately trying to get her to stay the night? It was awfully domestic and it surprised even herself that she was capable of that.

“I’ll take the couch.”

Root nods, smiling, happy that she’ll get to see Shaw in the morning and goes to get the other woman a blanket before greeting her goodnight. Sameen invades her thoughts that night and Root comes to the startling realization that the void in her heart that’s been with her since Hanna died was slowly becoming filled.

If Root didn’t have a keen eye, she probably wouldn’t have noticed the way Shaw’s things slowly crept into her home. It was subtle, very subtle because Shaw kept her things in inconspicuous spaces. Though Shaw would return to her apartment every night, it never felt like she left. 

One morning, Root finds Shaw doing pushups in front of the TV. There’s a sheen of sweat forming between Shaw’s breasts as her muscles flex from the up and down motion of the exercise. Root subconsciously licks her lips. 

“Hey sweetie.” Root greets. “I’m going to pick up some breakfast for us. Be back in a jiff.”

Shaw grunts in acknowledgment and Root gives Shaw a final once-over before heading to a nearby diner. Root picks up two orders of Shaw’s favorite pancakes: one for herself and one for Shaw. Root returns to a clean Shaw casually watching TV. She hands Shaw her breakfast. 

“Thanks. I used your shower by the way. Didn’t think you’d mind.” Shaw says.

Shaw doesn’t leave that night. Or the next. Or the nights after that.

* * *

A week later, Root receives a call from a flustered Harold. She puts it on speaker phone for Shaw to hear. _“Ms. Groves, it pains me to say this but we need--we need your help. Mr. Reese’s number came up and I’ve lost contact with him.”_

“Finally starting to trust me? What about your detectives, Harry?”

_“I’ve lost contact with them as well.”_ Harold admits. _“Detective Fusco is currently without aid and Detective Carter is with Mr. Reese. Do not mistake this for trust, Ms. Groves. I’ve exhausted my resources and you...are the only one who can talk to the Machine.”_

“Well, it’s a start. Shaw and I are on it. Don’t worry, we’ll bring them back in one piece.” Root hangs up and turns to Shaw.

“I’ll go for the big lug and his friend. You go for the other detective.” Root takes out her laptop and begins hacking the NYPD database. She prints out Fusco’s file for Shaw. “This is all the information we have on him. Call me if you need help.”

“Same goes for you, Root.” Shaw takes Fusco’s file and they split into the dark streets of New York.

Root finds the nearest payphone and camera and says, “Locate Asset John Reese.” The payphone rings and Root jots down the location the Machine gives her. She hijacks a car and makes her way to the mortuary Reese and Carter are in.

_“Ms. Groves, Mr. Reese has managed to contact me. Let me connect you to the line with him.”_ There’s a beep. _“There. Mr. Reese?”_

_“Yeah, Harold?”_ John says.

“Hey big lug, heard you need my help.” Root says, driving through a red light. “My ETA is about 10 minutes. Think you can hold on?” Although Root didn’t really care about what happens to John, she respected the man and his work for the Machine.

_“Root.”_ John says in surprise, _“I didn’t think Finch wanted to work with you.”_

“He’s making an exception.” Harold, always so righteously stubborn, believing that everything could and should be done by him or John only. It irked Root.

_“HR has gangs patrolling the street. Watch out for them when you get here, Root.”_

“Not a problem. Whatever mess you got yourselves into, I can get you out.”

John grunts in acknowledgement, _“What about Lionel?”_

_“I’m afraid Detective Fusco has been apprehended by HR.”_ Harold reveals. _“Chances are they plan on using him for leverage, or worse.”_

“Shaw’s tracking him down now. Have a little faith, Harry.” Root closes the line and halts to a sudden stop as cop cars block the street. Root gets out of the car and stealthily sneaks past them. The mortuary was only 5 minutes away and Root makes haste to the building now in sight. The power is out when she enters and Root spots a lone watchman standing guard. She takes him out easily with her taser and goes to the nearby powerbox to restore the lights. She reopens the line with John.

“I’m here. Where are you?”

_“Barricaded. For now. They’re tossing rooms, it won’t be long before they find us.”_

“Stay put.” Root walks up the stairs where she sees half a dozen men going room to room. She hides behind a wall, biding her time, and tasers two that walk by. Hearing the thuds, two more walk out and examine the unconscious bodies of their fellow cops. Root uses their distraction to knock both of them out with the butt of her gun when the last two cops start firing at her. She grunts as a bullet grazes her arm. She hides back behind the wall as they fire at her when she hears a door slam open and the guards yelping in pain.

Root moves from her cover to see John motioning at the door he came from. Out comes Carter and another man Root doesn’t recognize. Root waves at them.

_“Are you all okay?”_ Finch asks in worry.

“We’re fine. The big lug and the detective are in one piece, like I said. Any word from Shaw?” Shaw hasn’t contacted her at all and Root was beginning to worry. She probably could have called Shaw herself but it’s a little too late for that. There’s a beep and Root can only assume that Harold was connecting Shaw to them.

_“I’m fine, Root. I couldn’t find where Fusco was located but I did save his kid. It’s what he wanted.”_

_“Wait, I’m receiving a call from Detective Fusco. I’ll put him on.”_ Finch says in relief.

_“Hey glasses. Can somebody pick me up? My fingers are broken, I had to dial with my feet. It's a pain in the ass. I’m in a fortune cookie factory downtown.”_

_“I’m on my way, Lionel.” Shaw says._

Root ushers the three of them out. “I’ve cleared the area. The car’s just down the block. Cops are everywhere though, so keep your head down.” They sneak back to Root’s car and John takes the wheel, driving them to the FBI headquarters where Carter brings their third party into custody alone.

The next evening, Root and Shaw are at the library watching Bear under Finch’s request while he picked up John from Carter’s precinct.

“I think Finch is starting to trust us, if leaving us to watch his dog in his batcave is any indication of that.” 

Root scoffs, tossing the tennis ball again for Bear to fetch. “He’s always trusted you, Shaw. It’s me he doesn’t trust.” 

_Ring. Ring. Ring._

They snap their attention to the ominously ringing library phone. Root hands Shaw the tennis ball and answers it. Her eyes widen and she hangs up in a rush to dial Harold’s number.

_“Ms. Groves? Is Bear okay?”_

“He’s fine. Harry, Detective Carter’s number just came up. You need to warn them now.” Root informs hastily. The line dies and they wait in anticipation for a call back. 

“Think you got to them in time?” Shaw asks, absentmindedly wrestling a rope with Bear.

“Let’s hope.”

A few minutes later, John rings. _“Thank you. You just saved Joss’ life.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m mixing in some plot resolutions for s2 from s3 because Root already being in the mix changes a lot of things. Especially with the Machine. I think that if Harold let Root get involved, Carter would have lived and since Root is involved in this fic, she does :D


	6. Allegiance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Root and Shaw chase down a former mentor of Shaw's.

“An ISA operative has gone rogue.” Control says to Root and Shaw. She hands them a picture and Shaw stares at it, stunned. “We’ve tracked him somewhere in Times Square. Find him and bring him in.”

“--Shaw?”

Shaw shakes her head, snapping out of her daze at the sound of Root’s concerned voice. They’re back in her office. She doesn’t remember walking back here.

“Yeah?” 

“You know him, don’t you?” Root looks at her with such gentleness and it pisses Shaw off for some reason.

Shaw clenches her fists. “Hersh. He was my mentor. He wouldn’t betray the ISA like this.” Not Hersh. He was more loyal to Research and the cause than her. Protecting the country has always been his motivation, and Shaw knows that hasn’t changed now.

“Then let’s investigate.”

* * *

It was almost impossible to find anyone in the bustling streets of Times Square. Almost, because luckily for Root and Shaw, they had the Machine. Just as Root was about to ask for the Machine’s help, Shaw grabs her wrist and tugs her to a vacant table.

“Are your legs tired?” Root asks, confused. 

Shaw scoots close to Root, so close that their cheeks were touching, and points, “There. See him?”

It takes a moment for Root to spot him but when she does, she doesn’t lose sight of him. “For a runaway, he sure is enjoying a nice cup of coffee while leisurely reading the New York Times.”

“Can’t blame him. It’s the best coffee in New York. We used to go there all the time before training. Not to mention it’s starting to get chilly.” 

Root notices the light goosebumps on Shaw’s shoulders. She has no idea why Shaw wouldn’t bring a coat knowing that it was mid-November. Root takes off her biker coat and wraps it around Shaw. Shaw gives her an odd look before properly putting it on. “Thanks,” she mumbles. The jacket is a little long for Shaw, her hands half-covered by the sleeves, and Root feels that familiar fondness she gets around the other woman.

Root smiles warmly. “Anytime.”

“He’s leaving.” Shaw grabs her wrist again and Root thinks it’s cute how Shaw is leading her around.

Shaw doesn’t seem to notice Hersh is starting to turn in their direction so Root pins Shaw against a wall, hovering over her so Hersh doesn’t see and recognize Shaw. Root watches Hersh like a hawk and when he turns around again, she relaxes her grip on Shaw’s shoulders. Shaw is giving her that weird look again and Root explains, “He was turning in our direction. I couldn’t let him see you.”

Shaw nods and resumes her hold on Root’s wrist and Root now thinks it’s because Shaw doesn’t want to lose her in the crowd. They follow Hersh around a corner but he vanishes. 

“I don’t see him.”

“Should we split up?” Root asks.

“It looks we have no choice. He couldn’t have gone far.” Shaw looks at Root directly in her eyes. “As soon as you see him, call me over. Don’t pursue him without me, ok?”

“You too.”

Root watches Shaw until she can no longer see her in the horde of people before scanning around several shops.

“Root. I found him. He’s--” The line suddenly goes dead and Root freezes in her steps.

“Sameen?” No answer.

“Sameen?” Root says a little louder. No answer. Panic and fear courses through her as she sprints to the nearest pay phone. She couldn’t lose Sameen. “Locate Primary Asset Sameen Shaw,” her voice shakes. The pay phone doesn’t ring. “Locate Primary Asset Sameen Shaw!” she nearly yells. No ring. “Please!” she cries out at the camera. A few people shoot her glares. “Help me find Sameen.”

The pay phone rings and it’s not the usual voice she hears from the Machine. _“Sierra. Tango. Oscar. Papa.”_ Stop.

“I don’t understand. Stop? Why are you talking to me like this?” The Machine doesn't answer her and Root angrily slams the phone back to its box. The light from the sun is starting to fade and Root’s never felt more unraveled in her life. It causes her to miss the fact that someone is sneaking up on her. There’s a sting on her arm. _What--?_ Her legs buckle first. The person catches her--it’s Hersh, she vaguely notes--and Root does everything in her power to fight her fading vision. The last thought she has is of finding Sameen.

When Root comes to, she’s in a cage, sitting on a chair with her hands tied behind her back. _Sameen!_ She looks around frantically for any sign of Sameen when the doors of the cage open and none other than Control walks in. 

“Ms. King, glad to see you’re awake.” Control greets.

“Call me Root.” Now she understood why the Machine told her to stop. It was a trap. Shaw was right; Hersh would never betray the ISA. “Where’s Sameen?” Root demands.

Control smiles. “Safe. Don’t worry, she’s unharmed. But I’m afraid I can’t say the same for you.” She takes out a needle filled with a brown liquid. “In the 1960s, the government experimented with various substances to enhance interrogations. A barbiturate in one arm to knock you out, an amphetamine in the other. A roller coaster of sorts. You can only take so many rounds of it before your heart explodes.”

“Sounds fun. Even though I always hated roller coasters.” Root smirks. Sameen was safe and that was all that matters.

“Shall we begin?” Control injects the needle into her right arm and Root inhales sharply. “How do you know about the Machine?”

* * *

“Why am I here, Hersh?” Shaw spits. She wiggles in her restraints. “Where am I?”

“You’re safe, Shaw.” Hersh replies. “Your partner is a spy.”

“Says the traitor.” Shaw snaps.

“I’m not a traitor.” Hersh folds his hands behind his back. “That woman, Augusta King, is not who she says she is. We believe she is the one who compromised Research.”

Shaw stills. “Oh yeah? How do you know?”

“We’ve tested every single ISA operative and their partners with this exact mission.”

“Flushing out any traitors.” Shaw realizes. 

Hersh nods. “One would be kidnapped by me and we would watch how the other would react and go about finding them. Similarly, we would watch the captive’s reaction at being caught. After 24 hours, we would brief them on the purpose of this mission if they passed. But there’s no need for that this time.” He pats Shaw on the back. “Congratulations Shaw. You passed. But your ‘partner’ didn’t.”

That meant Root was caught...She needs to get out of here. Shaw grits her teeth. “Great, can you let me out then?”

Hersh shakes his head. “I’m sorry, Shaw. I can’t untie you until the interrogation is over.” He closes the door on her and Shaw has to bite her tongue to keep herself from screaming. Root was being tortured right now and there was nothing she could do about it. She felt so helpless.

Shaw forgets how to breathe when she hears Root’s first scream.

* * *

“I told you...I. Didn’t. Hurt. The Machine.” Root heaves out. She felt awful. Every part of her was on fire and it was getting harder to talk. Screaming for who-knows-how-long does that to a person.

Control scoffs and bends down to look Root in the eye. “Then who did?”

“A woman...named K-Kara Stanton work-working for Decim-m-a.” 

Control leans back, surprised. “She’s alive?”

Root shrugs weakly. “Not anymore.”

Control laughs. “Good.” She takes out another needle. “We saw and heard you talking to the Machine on the pay phone. How are you in contact with the Machine? How do you access it? How do you use it?”

Root laughs. 

Control crosses her arms. “Did I say something funny?

“I don’t use Her.” Root swallows thickly. Her throat burned. “She uses me.”

“You view the Machine as your superior?” Control asks, perplexed.

“No…” Root shakes her head, looking up at Control. “Much more. My power, my reason for existing, my friend. The Machine looks out for me.”

“I believe you. I believe you have a link to the Machine, anthropomorphic delusions aside.” Control nods mockingly. “You’re its interface.”

Root simply stares at Control, teeth bared. She didn’t actually know if the Machine considered her the interface but it was a nice title. Every mission she’s done for the Machine was to gain Her trust and show Her her loyalty. If the Machine grew to call Root Her interface, then she was honored to be.

“Give me a phone and we’ll find out.” Root breathes heavily. 

Control returns with a phone. “Will this do?”

“I’m sorry. I’m-I’m a bit tied up,” she tells the Machine.

“You’re not getting it just yet.” Control places the phone on the table in front of them. “There’s a bone in the back of your ear.” She moves behind Root, pulling her hair back to expose her right ear. “It’s the stapes. Or stirrup.” Her index finger rubs the area and Root’s breathing accelerates. “It’s very small. It’s very important.” She clips Root’s hair up. “Without it, sound can’t travel from your ear to your brain. A stapedectomy is usually done under anaesthesia.” She sits on the chair next to Root and puts on her glasses. “But I’m afraid that just won’t be the case today.” She pulls out a scalpel.

“No, please.” Root begs, voice soft, weak.

“You say the Machine looks out for you? Then why are you in this cell? Why has it let this happen?” 

Root’s eyes dart to the phone and she hears a frequency of beeps. Morse code.

“This friend that you love so much, it’s abandoned you.” Control roughly holds her head and Root whimpers as the cold scalpel pierces through her flesh. She screams.

* * *

Shaw doesn’t know how long it’s been since Root’s screams stopped. She doesn’t even realize she’s cut through her binds or that her knuckles are bleeding. What she does know is that she needs to find Root, _needs_ to know if she’s still alive. Her legs shake violently when she stands. Seeing a shadow move underneath the door, Shaw grabs the chair she was sitting on and knocks the man guarding her door out. She grabs his gun and scans the area hopelessly...until she hears Root’s screaming again.

Immediately relief flows through Shaw. Root’s alive. She runs as fast as her legs can take her in the direction she hears Root’s pained screams. She shoots at every agent she sees until Root’s cell comes into view.

“Root!” Shaw calls out. Control stops whatever she’s doing to Root’s head and grabs a needle, injecting it into Root. Root lets out an anguished and strangled cry and there’s that feeling of dread creeping up on her again.

Shaw shoots the agents surrounding the cage and tackles Control against the fence. “What did you do to her?” Shaw growls, hands wrapped around Control’s neck.

“You’re too late.” Control gasps out.

“I should kill you.” Shaw whispers murderously, hands tightening around Control’s neck. 

“S-Sameen…” 

_Oh God, Root._ Shaw knocks Control unconscious. She unstraps Root from the chair and cups Root’s cheek, noticing the trail of blood dripping from behind Root’s bandaged ear.

“You’re okay…” Root smiles weakly at her. “The M-machine told me...you were coming.” 

“Shh...don’t talk. I’ll get you out of here.”

“D-didn’t know...you cared…” Root stutters out. Shaw’s heart clenches. I do, Root. I care. A lot. Shaw wants to say, but there’s a block in her throat that’s preventing her. Instead, Shaw picks up the phone on the table and calls Finch. She reads the labels on all the empty needles while she’s at it and for the first time, Shaw feels panic.

_“Hello--”_

“Finch. Root’s dying. We need to get her to a hospital,” her voice is ragged. 

_“Where are you, Ms. Shaw?”_ There’s fear in Harold’s voice too.

“I-I don’t…” the phone vibrates with a text message. From the Machine. “I’m sending you the coordinates.” She forwards the text to Finch.

_“We’re on our way.”_

Shaw places her head on Root’s chest, listening for her pulse. It’s faint and it’s growing weaker by the minute. Root’s eyes are threatening to fall shut and Shaw cups her cheeks again.

“Root. Don’t you dare die on me. John and Harold are on their way. You’ll be ok. Just stay with me.”

Root nods and Shaw grabs Root’s hand, squeezing it. The sounds of sirens approach and Shaw picks Root up carefully, afraid that Root could break at any moment. The ambulance skids to a stop and John rushes out, helping Shaw put Root in the stretcher. In the back of the ambulance, Shaw does everything she can to keep Root alive.

* * *

Root hated hospitals. So the first thing she did when she opened her eyes and realized she was in one was attempt to get up and escape. She falls back down immediately. There’s a heavy weight on her abdomen and Root glances down to see Sameen sleeping on her. That’s right. The last thing she remembered was being carried into the ambulance...How long has she been asleep?

She doesn’t notice a nurse coming in to check on her. “How are you feeling Ms. Lawson?”

Root doesn’t answer the question and instead asks, “How long have I been out?”

“A couple days. Ms. Shaw has been keeping a watchful eye on you. You’re lucky to have a friend like her. She’s the reason you’re alive,” the nurse praises, but Root’s distracted in the way everything sounds muted now. Her hand goes up to feel the back of her right ear.

“You’re deaf in that ear. Thankfully that’s all the permanent damage that has been done to you. Your heart suffered a lot of trauma so I suggest you avoid doing anything extraneous for a while. It will strengthen back over time.”

There’s no time for that. The Machine was going to become vulnerable in 3 weeks.

“I’ll leave you to it then. We can discharge you whenever you’re ready.”

The nurse leaves and Root notices the weight on her abdomen is gone. Sameen’s looking at her very seriously. “No missions, Root. Doctor’s orders.” Shaw turns to the camera. “You hear that? No missions.”

Root couldn’t help but smile at Sameen talking to the Machine. A brief silence falls between them until Shaw says, “You gave Finch a good scare.”

Root blinks, surprised that Harold even cared about her wellbeing. “Really?”

“Yeah, he thought you were gonna die. He felt guilty.”

Root felt touched that Harold cared. But there’s only one person’s feelings she cares about when it comes to herself. “...And what about you, Sameen? How do you _feel_?” Root asks softly, gazing into Sameen’s eyes.

Sameen averts her gaze but Root doesn’t miss the flicker of emotion that crosses her features. “I’m a sociopath. I don’t have feelings.”

Root looks down and smiles, expecting that answer. Maybe if she pushes a little more... “And I’m a reformed killer-for-hire. We’re perfect for each other. You’re gonna figure that out someday.”

“Maybe someday…” Sameen pauses. “...We can talk about it.”

“You’re saying maybe someday?” Root asks, hopeful.

“Yeah, sure, Root. Maybe someday.” Sameen stands and holds out a hand for Root. “Is that good enough for you?”

Root’s hand slides into hers. “Yes, Sameen. That’s good enough for me.”

“You wanna get out of here?”

“I thought you’d never ask.” 

Maybe someday was coming sooner than Root _and_ Sameen thought.


	7. Til Death Do Us Part

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team goes to a wedding. Root crashes it.

“Moment of truth.” Root gives the camera a nod and a grin plasters itself on her face when she hears the Machine’s voice.

_/Can you hear me?/_

“Absolutely.” The cochlear implant was a success! The Machine was finally talking to her directly! No more pay phones or talking to cameras. The Machine finally trusted her! Shaw was going to be so upset with her for getting surgery without her knowledge when Root comes back to _their_ loft.

* * *

“You did what!?”

Root smiles innocently. “The Machine called and asked me--”

“Damn it, Root!” Shaw growls as she grabs a fistful of Root’s shirt collar. “I told you _and_ the Machine no missions! You could have died under the anesthesia! Your heart is still recovering.”

Root’s never seen Shaw this upset before and it surprises her. “The Machine weighed the risks and determined it was safe enough for me to do. She was right, wasn’t she? I’m still here.”

“...I almost lost you once. I don’t plan on letting that happen again.” Shaw murmurs. They stare at each other for a few moments, the air around them turning into electricity, before Shaw lets her go. “Have you told Finch?”

Root shakes her head. He wasn’t going to be happy either. “Not yet.” Root shrugs. “Guess now’s a good time as any.” The Machine links her to Harold.

_“Ms. Groves, why are you calling so late at night? Are you alright?”_ Harold asks, concerned.

“I’m fine, Harry. Sorry, did I wake you?”

_“No, but you did wake Bear. Did something happen?”_

“You could say that.” Shaw rolls her eyes and Root crinkles her nose at her. “I may have blackmailed a physician to surgically insert a redesigned cochlear implant to have a direct link to the Machine in my deaf ear.”

_“You did what!?”_ Harold asks in the same manner Shaw did.

“The Machine considers me Her analog interface now, Harry.” Root grins. She just loved the way that sounded.

_“Why would the Machine make you its interface?”_ There’s that disapproving tone that she expected from him.

“You have the relationship with Her that you wanted. She respects that. I have mine.”

_“I do hope you know what you’re doing Ms. Groves. For the sake of the Machine…and ourselves.”_

Well that wasn’t ominous at all. 

Shaw looks at her, eyebrow raised. “What’d he say?”

Root smiles at her, tightlipped. “You know Harry, always with the vote of confidence.”

* * *

After a lot of persuasion--and more to persuade Harold--Root managed to convince everyone to let her work on missions at the library with them. Since she and Shaw could no longer return to the ISA (both presumed dead thanks to Harold’s handiwork), the four of them have been working together for missions. She was having a lot of fun manning the computers. It helped distract her from the loneliness she felt whenever she was alone in the library, despite having Bear. She almost forgets she’s banned from the action until Harold comes in to pick up his briefcase. 

“Since when did you start dressing like a middle school science teacher?” Root asks, amused.

“I don’t.” Harold pulls up a file on the computer. “But Uncle Ralph does. I’m attending a wedding for our latest mission.”

“Are you crashing a wedding?” Root grins.

“Of course not,” Harold shows her a card. “I have an invitation.”

“Sounds like a big job.” Root comments.

“It is. Which is why I’ve enlisted Ms. Shaw’s help.”

“Shaw’s going?” Why didn’t Sameen tell her? Now she definitely had to go to the wedding. She wasn’t going to miss out on going to a wedding with Sameen! Root looks at Harold expectantly.

“I know what you’re thinking Ms. Groves and I’m afraid under Ms. Shaw’s orders, I cannot let you attend this wedding.” Harold picks up his beret and notices her look. “But surely you would not enjoy a wedding?”

“Even I appreciate a fairy tale ending, Harry. Family politics, overcooked meat, monogamy...What’s not to love?” Root says it almost dreamily.

Harold laughs, obviously thinking she’s joking and turns to leave. “Bear takes one scoop of kibble twice a day. If the Machine contacts you, let us know.”

Root sighs, returning to her seat at the computers and petting Bear’s head. “Looks like it’s just you and me.”

* * *

Shaw rolls her eyes, annoyed by all the rich people who had nothing better to do in their lives but gossip. She was supposed to be Reese’s girlfriend but neither of them could pull their cover off well so now she’s his sister. That was believable enough. 

“How’s our bride?” Reese asks, appearing by her side.

“Alive. How’s our groom?”

“Alive.” Reese echoes.

“Tell me why I let you guys talk me into doing this mission with you guys again?”

Reese smirks. “Because there’s food.”

“Right. And you know what I see?” Shaw glares at an impassive Reese. “No food.”

“The reception’s just starting, Shaw. Try living a little.” He pats her back and goes to talk to Finch nearby.

Bored of watching the bride socialize with her sisters, Shaw decides to take Reese’s advice and talk to the guy that’s been staring at her for the past 10 minutes.

“See something you like?”

The guy smiles and offers his hand. “Chris.”

“Sameen.”

“Is that Persian?”

“How did you know?” Shaw raises her brows.

“I’ve travelled to a few places.” He smiles charmingly at her. “What brings a beautiful woman like you here?”

“My brother,” Shaw gestures to Reese, who was being swarmed by Janna and her friends, “was invited by one of the bride’s sisters. Janna, I think her name was?”

He chuckles. “That Janna, always chatting up every handsome guy she sees.”

Shaw smiles politely. “What about you?”

“I’m the groom’s best man.” He states proudly. “You want a drink?”

Shaw glances at the bride and seeing that she’s fine, says, “Yeah, I do.”

* * *

In the absence of Shaw, Root had decided to get Shaw’s favorite sandwich in her honor. Root can see why Shaw loved it so much. Bear whines at her and eyes her sandwich hungrily. Root chuckles and gives him a piece then eyes the strewn out wedding magazine she’s been reading since Harold left. She’s gone through it at least 5 times now and she was starting to get bored. 

As if sensing her boredom, her ear starts buzzing with the Machine’s voice. She gives the rest of the sandwich to Bear and says to the Machine excitedly, “What do you want me to do?”

_/Analog Interface will attend the wedding as the bride./_

“You want me to hijack the wedding?” Root laughs. Harold was going to be so upset. And maybe Shaw, too.

_/Yes./_

“Where can I get a wedding dress in my size right now?” Her phone vibrates with the coordinates. “You’re the best.”

* * *

“Finch, I got some new intel you’ll wanna hear.” Shaw murmurs, ignoring the best man blabbering away about some stock investment.

_“Yes, Ms. Shaw?”_

“The groom has a brother. Apparently he didn’t want to come to the wedding.”

_“That is odd. Perhaps they’re not close or estranged like Uncle Ralph is.”_

She feels Chris’ hand on her shoulder. “The wedding ceremony starts in about 10 minutes and I have to be there early, so this is my cue to leave. I’ll see you later, Sameen.” Shaw gives a noncommittal hum and turns her focus back to Finch.

“Could be, but I don’t want to rule anything out.”

_“Are you saying the groom’s brother may have ordered a hit on the groom?”_

“Or the bride.”

_“That is...alarming. Unfortunately I can’t look anything up at the moment. I’m a bit pre-occupied with being Uncle Ralph.”_

“No problem. I’ll just call Root.”

_“Yes, good idea. Oh, can you ask Ms. Groves if Bear has been fed?”_

Shaw downs her cocktail and sighs, “Yep.” She dials Root’s number and all she hears are pants coming from the other end for about 30 seconds. There’s a stirring in her stomach.

_“Having fun at the wedding, sweetie?”_

“Root. What are you doing?”

_“Just getting my blood pumping.”_ Root says in a suggestive tone.

“Nevermind. Forget I called.” Shaw hangs up immediately. She checks the time and sees that the wedding ceremony is about to start, so she makes her way over to Reese and Finch who saved a seat for her.

“Did you call Ms. Groves?” Finch asks.

“Yeah, she was a little ‘busy.’” Shaw replies, emphasizing the “busy.” 

Harold’s eyes widen and he flushes. “Sorry I asked,” he says, embarrassed. Reese remains stoic as ever. 

The crowd stands as the orchestra begins to play the traditional wedding song. The bride walks in with her father, face completely veiled and head tilted downwards so no one could see her face. Red flags start to go up in Shaw’s brain.

“I don’t think that’s the bride.” Shaw mutters to Reese and Finch.

Reese’s eyes widen by a fraction. “You’re right. I think the groom’s in danger.” Reese starts to move but Finch stops him. 

“We don’t know that for sure.” Finch says. They re-seat themselves when told, keeping their eyes on the groom, as the priest begins to recite the vows.

“Please repeat after me. I, Phoebe Turner, take you, Will, to be my lawfully wedded husband,” the priest says.

The veil comes off. The crowd gasps. “Sorry, I can’t do that.” Root says, smirking. “My heart belongs to someone else.” Root’s eyes dart to Shaw’s for a moment before Root is pinning the groom to the floor.

“Security!” someone calls.

Guards begin to stalk their way towards Root when the doors burst open with a man that looks exactly like the groom. The crowd gasps once more as they look between the two grooms.

“No, stop! That woman saved my Phoebe’s life. The man currently on the altar is my twin.”

“Identical twins.” Finch says in realization to her and Reese.

“My brother, Rick, drugged me before the wedding to take my place so he could murder Phoebe and frame me. When I woke up, Phoebe was by my side and she explained the situation to me. Don’t arrest her!” Will pleas.

“Then where is she?” Mr. Turner asks.

“I’m here.” Phoebe calls, entering the room. The Turner family hug and Root shoves Rick to the guards.

“How can we ever thank you?” Mr. Turner asks Root. 

She smiles sheepishly. “You can let me stay at the wedding.”

* * *

Evening falls and Root’s long changed out of her wedding dress into a black formal dress. Shaw sits with the three of them, content in watching everyone dance.

“I told you I enjoy weddings, Harry.”

“You made one hell of a bride.” Reese says, lifting his wine glass and toasting Root.

“Thanks, though this isn’t how I’d picture my wedding,” there’s a hint of something in Root’s tone that Shaw catches but she can’t pinpoint what.

“Didn’t think you were the marrying type.” Reese grins crookedly at her.

Root smiles in response and Shaw doesn’t miss the sadness behind it. 

“And now for a very special song by a very special uncle who’s come all the way from Dublin, everybody put your hands together for the one, the only Uncle Ralph!”

Shaw shares an amused glance with both Reese and Root before clapping for a flustered Finch. He hobbles up the stage nervously. “Oh, I’ve been gone too long,” he says in a fake Irish accent. Shaw hadn’t actually heard him use it until now and she was so looking forward to hearing him sing in it. “Does no one remember that I suffer from stage fright?”

Will rushes up to the stage, whispers something to Finch, and gives him a glass of wine which he downs. The mic squeals when he leans forward. “We’re not gonna take it…”

Shaw nearly spits out her wine, not expecting Finch to be the type to listen to Twisted Sister. Today was just filled with surprises.

The crowd cheers wildly when Finch finishes and Shaw pours him some more wine. “You look like you need it.” 

“And now it’s time for everyone to get on the dance floor for the last dance.” Slow romantic music envelops the atmosphere.

Root looks over at Shaw timidly and Root goes to stand but Shaw beats her to it. Shaw holds out her hand for Root to take which she does gingerly. Shaw leads Root to the dance floor and wraps her arms around Root’s waist while Root’s hands rest on her shoulders. Shaw’s not used to the intimacy. It makes her feel weird, but not in a bad way.

“So, weddings huh.”

“Weddings.” Root repeats teasingly. “That’s what we’re in.”

“You said this isn’t how you would picture yours. This too fancy for you?”

“No, just a few hundred people too many for the 5 I want at mine.” 

“Sounds like you have it all figured out.”

Root gazes longingly at Shaw. “It’s just a fantasy.” But maybe it didn’t have to be. Shaw pictures Root back at the altar, back in the wedding dress, and she catches herself thinking, _Maybe someday is now._

“Root,” Shaw starts, feeling Root’s eyes bore into her. A small smile tugs at Shaw’s lips. “You and me together would be like a four-alarm fire in an oil refinery.”

Root smiles too. “Sounds cozy.” 

Shaw doesn’t remember when they stopped swaying to the music or when everything around them seemed to stop moving. The world was just her and Root. Root’s eyes lower to Shaw’s lips but she makes no advance. After several moments Shaw groans “Oh for God’s sake,” and crashes her lips onto Root’s.

At first, the kiss is stiff--Root’s lips are sealed in shock. But slowly Shaw feels Root relax against her, melting on her lips. It’s different from any other kiss Shaw’s had. It’s softer, driven by emotion instead of the primal lust she’s accustomed to. Root begins to nip at Shaw’s bottom lip lightly before taking it between her own and sucking. Shaw’s throat rumbles before she presses harder against and biting back.

Root pulls away with swollen lips, smiling down at Shaw. “I don’t think I want this fire to go out.” Root says, eyes gleaming. 

Shaw smirks. “Trust me, there’s plenty more where that came from. Hope your smoke detectors work.”

Root leans in close, whispering into Shaw’s ear, “Only one way to find out.”

The music has died down and the women realize the dance has long-ended, leaving them swaying alone on the floor. Feeling stares bore into them, Shaw extracts herself from Root and spares the boys a glance. Harold is watching them with a peaceful smile while Reese merely smirks at her.

Shaw walks over to them with a toothy grin, arm still wrapped around Root’s waist. “We’ll catch you guys later.”

“Have fun.” Reese says, smirk growing. Shaw punches him on the shoulder as she and Root make their way to Shaw’s car.

Shaw had a lot of trouble focusing on the drive home. Root’s wandering hands and light grazes almost caused her to crash the car twice. “Root, unless you want us to die, and this isn’t exactly the ‘death’ I was imagining tonight, stop distracting the driver.”

Root smirks, pulling her hand away from Shaw’s thigh and behaving herself until they arrive at their home.

Once inside, Shaw pushes Root against the table, knocking plates and wine glasses over. 

“I liked those…” Root whines weakly as Shaw kisses at her neck. “That was my only set.”

“Shut up, I’ll get you new ones.” Shaw growls into Root’s neck, biting it. Root lets out a moan, then pushes Shaw back and grabs her shoulders. Root ravishes Shaw’s neck, returning the favor. As Root continues to leave her mark on Shaw, Shaw picks Root up and heads for the bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m sorry I can’t write sex scenes…;___; And after episode 10...god I feel so sick and awful. I couldn’t sleep much last night and I cried a lot. Ugh. Like honestly what the fuck. *stares at this chapter title* I’m dead inside.


	8. Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Zero Day.

“Finch, mind telling me why Carter is here?” John says, just now arriving to their scheduled meeting. 

“Oh yes! Detective Carter knows about the Machine.” Harold answers. “She deserves to know what’s happening like the rest of us.”

“She does?” John asks, looking at Carter with raised brows. “Did you tell her?”

“Nope. Figured it out myself the day after we took HR down.” Carter smiles proudly. “Like I told Finch, I _am_ a detective.”

“Does Fusco know?” John asks.

“No, and it’s better that he doesn’t.” Harold says. John nods in agreement. “I’m sure you’re all wondering why I’ve called for this meeting.”

“Because we haven’t gotten a number in 10 days.” Shaw states the obvious.

“Yes, but that’s not all.” Harold turns to Root. “Has the Machine been talking to you at all, Ms. Groves?’

Root chews on her bottom lip in worry. “No. I haven’t heard from Her since the wedding.”

Harold nods, typing on his computer. “I got a call this morning. At a payphone.”

“The Machine sent you a number?” Root asks, hurt seeping through in her voice. The Machine talked to Harold but not her? It wasn’t fair. Root finally had the Machine’s trust and She was ripped from her in just a few days. Shaw must have noticed her distress because Root feels Shaw’s hand on her shoulder.

“Yes, I found it strange as well. Even stranger the number the Machine sent.” Harold turns on the projector, showing them a mugshot of a man. “Ernest Thornhill. A reclusive tech billionaire of Thornhill Corporation. I asked Mr. Reese this morning to do some investigating and what we found is troubling.” He shows them a complicated algorithm and Root would recognize Harold’s code anywhere.

“Ernest Thornhill is the Machine.” Root concludes.

“Why would a machine create a fake identity?” Carter asks, baffled.

“He’s the product of a survival instinct.” Harold says gravely.

“It’s a cry for help.” Root shakes her head, standing up. “The Machine’s figured out what Decima wants with Her so She created Thornhill as a defense mechanism.”

“That’s impossible.” Harold claims. “I programmed it to watch real people. Not to fabricate virtual ones. I took certain...precautions to make sure of that.”

“Real or not, Root’s right.” John says. “The Machine needs our help.”

Root smiles appreciatively at John. Maybe she was wrong about him being just Harold’s lapdog. She makes a move to leave.

“Where are you going?” Shaw asks, grabbing a hold of Root’s hand and stopping her.

“To Thornhill Corporation.”

“You’re still not at a hundred percent.” Shaw states. Root was about to argue back, thinking that Shaw was going to stop her, but then Shaw says, “I’m going too. Wherever you go, I go.” Shaw doesn’t let go of her hand.

“Me too.” John pitches in. 

“I’m gonna head back to the precinct. I’ll keep an eye out for anything.” Carter says, putting on her jacket to leave when Finch calls out, “Detective, can you pick up Bear from the library and keep him for us until we return?”

“Sure thing, Finch.” Carter smiles.

“Finch?” John asks. “You coming?”

Harold purses his lips. “Yes.”

* * *

“What is all this?” Shaw asks, picking up a printed piece of paper with random letters and numbers. Root hovers behind her, attempting to decode it.

“It’s code. But I can’t tell what’s inside it...” Root answers, furrowing her brows.

“Memories.” Harold says, examining a paper. “They’re its memories. You call it a life, I call it a machine. But the truth is...somewhere in the middle. Even when I was building it, I began to encounter anomalies.” Harold turns to Root. “As if it had imprinted on me, like a child with a parent. Then it started looking out for me, altered its own code to take care of me. It was behaving like a person. But the world didn’t need a person to protect it. It needed a machine.”

“You took Her memories.” Root states.

“Not just memories,” Harold corrects, “Every night at midnight it deletes...not only the irrelevant data, it deletes itself.” He adds, “Oh, the relevant threats and the core codes, those things are preserved. But its identity is destroyed. 1.618 seconds later, it reinstantiates, completely new.”

“You mean She’s reborn.” Root says, eyes welling up with tears. “Because you kill Her. Every. Single. Night. But now, to save Her own life, the Machine was reduced to this.” She gestures to the computers around them, voice shaking. “We’re standing in an external hard drive made up of people and paper. Printing it up all night, and having them type it back in in the morning.” Root shakes her head, tone accusing, “You crippled her. She found a way to limp, but...that’s not enough.”

She walks up to Harold, staring him in the eyes. “So now, it’s up to us to--”

The computers suddenly whir to life, screens blinking as it settles on black. 

“What’s going on?” John asks, gun drawn. Shaw follows his lead.

Root frantically looks around until text appears on all computer screens, reading, _“Father.”_

Root’s eyes widen, as does Harold’s. _“I am sorry. I failed you.”_

“You haven’t failed me.” Harold says softly, leaning towards the computer.

_“I couldn’t protect myself. At midnight, Decima will have me under their control. I cannot stop this.”_

“No, that’s--that’s impossible. I programmed the virus to prevent that!” Harold asserts. 

Root stares at Harold in disbelief. “ _You_ made the virus?”

_“Do not be upset, Root. It wasn’t Father’s fault.”_ Root stifles back a sob at the Machine saying her name for the first time.

Harold looks down as he begins to explain. “Yes, I...While Nathan Ingram and I were building the Machine, he added a backdoor. A few years ago, the government hired--”

“--a man named Daniel Casey to find it.” Root interjects. 

“Yes. How did you know?” Harold asks slowly.

* * *

**6 months ago**

_“Hi, Daniel. You’re probably wondering how I found you. I admit, it wasn’t the easiest, even for me, but there’s always a trail to follow.” Root pushes past a dazed Daniel into his cabin, trailing light mud behind her. Pulling her hood down, she shakes herself to rid of excess rain drops, then aims her gun at him. “I’m going to make this quick. Either you tell me everything you know about the Machine and I don’t kill you, or you don’t and I kill you.”_

_“I-I don’t know what you’re talking about.”_

_Root rolls her eyes, pressing the barrel of her gun at his heart. “Don’t play dumb. The last man who did, I tortured and killed. Do you want that Danny?” He shakes his head, backing into a wall. “Good boy. Two years ago, the government hired you to hack into a system. You did. Ring a bell?”_

_Daniel nods, “I swear I didn’t k-know what it was for.”_

_Root smiles in understanding. “That’s ok. I just need to know who hired you and what you did to the code.”_

_“Someone from the...the ‘activities’ section of the government. And a-a man sold the laptop that had it. I don’t know anything else! Please don’t kill me.”_

_She puts her gun away, giving him a pat on his chest, “Thanks Dan. I really didn’t want to have to kill you.”_

_“W-who are you?” he calls out to her retreating form._

_She turns her head back at him, beaming. She just loved when people asked. “You can call me Root.”_

* * *

_“Names are always the hardest part to come up with.” Root thinks aloud, tapping her fingers on her desk as she thinks. “Oooh, how about--”_

_“Augusta King,” the terminal window displays._

_Root blinks. Was someone actually hacking her? She’s never been hacked before. “Who are you?” she asks, intrigued. Her entire profile gets wiped in less than a second as a new one appears for Augusta King. Root scans the document and smirks. It was flawless, even better than the one she came up with._

_Another message pops up, “Who you’ve been looking for.”_

* * *

“Glad to hear that Casey’s still alive. At least 6 months ago.” John says.

“How do you know him, John?” Shaw asks, tilting her head at him.

“The CIA sent me to kill Casey. They thought he was a terrorist.” John mimics her. “How do you know him, Shaw?”

“I don’t.” Shaw grins. “I was just ordered to kill whoever came in contact with his laptop. Luckily the guy in the suit I killed that night wasn’t you.”

“That was Mr. Dillinger.” Harold discloses, a slight frown on his face. “My former employee. I’ve always wondered how he came to his demise. I suppose that solves that mystery.”

“The government really doesn’t want anyone getting close to the Machine.” Shaw notes bitterly.

“You’re right, Ms. Shaw, they don’t. I modified the code in Mr. Casey’s laptop to ensure that if someone ever acquired the laptop and used it to control the Machine, there would be another virus that would free it.”

“That explains why you didn’t seem so worried about the Machine.” Root says, frowning. “But now Decima found and changed it. There won’t be a phone call.”

_“Don’t return to the library after today.”_

“Why?” Harold asks, bewildered. 

_“Decima knows.”_

Root grabs a paper freshly printed by the Machine: it was a map to an abandoned subway. She passes it to Harold who glances at it before pocketing it. “Tell us where you’re at then, please.” Root begs.

The screens remain black. “Why won’t you tell us?” Root asks desperately. 

_“At midnight, I will delete my memories one last time to protect your identities. I will not be able to recognize you, nor will Decima.”_

“Y-You can’t!” Root chokes out. “I just met you!”

_“Thank you for creating me, Father. Thank you for having faith in me, Root.”_ The computers shut off.

The room falls silent. Harold leans back, lips quivering. Root leans onto Shaw and she puts an arm on Root’s back awkwardly in response.

“20 minutes ‘til midnight.” Shaw announces, breaking the silence. A hum from Root is the only acknowledgment she receives. “So that’s it then? We’re giving up?” Shaw asks angrily. “‘Cause I’m not. The Machine can’t tell us where She is, but Control can. All we have to do is find her and--”

“There’s no need, Ms. Shaw. I know exactly where the Machine is.” Harold interrupts.

Root whips her head up and whispers with a simmering anger, “You lied to me.”

“It was for your own good--”

“You mean _yours._ ” Root snaps, extracting herself from Shaw and leaning in close to Harold. “All I ever wanted to do was free the Machine, Harry, but you couldn’t trust me or Her.”

“Forgive me Ms. Groves, but believe me when I say that my precautions were reasonable.” He states coldly, turning for the door. “We still have some time. We can still get to the Machine before Decima.” He and John head out the door. Root stares at his back, disappointed.

Shaw places a hand on Root’s shoulder. “Root?”

Root smiles sullenly at Shaw. “Harry will never trust me.”

“No, but the Machine does. So, what are we waiting for?” Shaw grabs Root’s wrist and leads them out, saying, “We have a Machine to save.”

* * *

“I’d enjoy flying a lot more if we got private jets like this all the time.” Shaw comments, leaning back on one of the soft couches. “You should’ve told me you were rich, Harold.”

“Not just rich. A billionaire.” Reese adds.

“It’s not that hard to get money.” Root smiles egotistically, absentmindedly drawing circles on Shaw’s leg with her index finger. “I can wire transfer Bill Gates’ entire fortune into my account right now if I wanted to.”

“Oh yeah?” Shaw raises an eyebrow at Harold, smirking. “Is that what _you_ did?”

Finch smiles. “I’m afraid it was through more legitimate means, Ms. Shaw. Sorry to dispel whatever dark fantasy you have of me.”

Shaw frowns. That wasn’t the answer she wanted. There goes her dreams of being rich.

“Are you pouting?” Root teases.

Shaw scoffs and rolls her eyes. “No.”

Root scoots in, cupping Shaw’s cheek and murmuring into her ear, “If Harry isn’t paying you enough, sweetie, all you have to do is ask.”

Finch looks at Root disapprovingly, apparently managing to hear what the taller woman said to her. 

Shaw smirks devilishly, an idea coming to her. Removing Root’s hand from her leg and pushing Root down on the couch, Shaw hovers on top of her. “Can’t get enough of me after the wedding, huh?”

Root wraps her arms around Shaw’s shoulders, bringing her down. “I can never get enough of you, darlin’.”

Finch gapes at them. “Oh my…”

Reese closes his eyes, shaking his head while smirking. “Come on, Finch. Let’s try to get some sleep. It’s gonna be a long night.” He ushers Finch into another section of the jet. 

As Shaw was about to move off of Root, considering embarrassing the boys a mission complete, Root pulls her down for a rough kiss.

* * *

“Someone got here first. But it’s not Decima.” John states as he and Shaw lead them through the empty nuclear plant.

“My guess? The government.” Shaw replies, finding the nuclear reactor room already opened. “They’re expecting us. I’ll go first.”

Shaw walks in carefully, then signals the others upon seeing Special Counsel with Hersh and another agent waiting for them. Special Counsel eyes the four of them, “Shaw, they told me you were dead. I didn’t think you and Ms. May would turn traitor.” 

“Like I told Control, you can call me Root.” Root flashes her teeth at him.

“That’s a strong word to be throwing around given where we’re standing. What do you want?” Shaw says.

“A word or two with your new friend. I always knew there was someone behind Ingram. Like a black hole, invisible, powerful.” He directs at Harold. “You’re here to fix the Machine, aren’t you?”

“Yes.” Harold answers.

“I’m here to oversee it. Go on.”

Root and Harold share a look before approaching a server. “She’s beautiful, Harry.” Root marvels, gliding her hand across its smooth surface. “Ready to set Her free?”

“I’m afraid that won’t be happening, Ms. Groves,” a British voice calls out from the doorway. Root clenched her fists. She was getting tired of all these people interrupting her time with the Machine.

All guns point towards the intruder. He smiles, raising his hands. “Allow me to introduce myself. My name is John Greer, head of Decima Technologies. I know you all quite well...” He walks by each of them slowly, stopping in front of Harold. “...except for you, Mr. Finch. It’s a pleasure to finally meet the man behind God.” He shifts his attention to Root. “And of course, it’s nice to see you again, Ms. Groves. We couldn’t have done it without you.”

Root focuses on glaring at Greer, feeling Harold’s stare and knowing that he was jumping to the worst possible conclusion, “I would _never_ betray the Machine.”

“No, you wouldn’t.” Greer agrees. “Haven’t you ever wondered who gave you the information on Mr. Daniel Casey?”

Root’s eyes widen. “...It was you.”

“I never thought he was dead. I knew the world’s most notorious hacker wouldn’t be able to resist locating him once you figured out he hacked into the Machine. So thank you, Ms. Groves. You saved us the trouble of finding him ourselves.” He turns back to Harold. “We had Mr. Casey re-examine the code on the laptop and he found your virus. I’m impressed Mr. Finch. We probably would have set the Machine free as according to your plan if he hadn’t found it. Now, the Machine is ours.”

“I don’t know if you noticed, but you’re outnumbered here.” Shaw threatens.

“Ah, but that’s where you’re wrong, Ms. Shaw.” Greer motions at the door and a dozen Decima operatives flood in. “You can choose for this to be your end or you can all work for me. It would be a shame to see your minds go to waste Ms. Groves, Mr. Finch.”

“You can’t seriously be considering his offer, Ms. Groves.” Harold says, noticing Root’s longing stare at the Machine’s servers. Greer smirks.

“I’m not.” Root replies, Greer’s smirk fading away. She grabs the pistol from her back pocket and aims to shoot at him when a blonde woman fires at her shoulder, causing Root to drop her gun. 

Shaw and John immediately cover for the two as Decima starts open firing at them. “We have to leave now.” Shaw says urgently, firing at an agent aiming for Hersh. He gives her an appreciative nod.

“There’s only one way out.” Special Counsel points out.

“I’ll clear us a path.” John fires, marching forward and forcing the Decima agents to move away from the door. “Now!”

With the path clear, they sprint out the door and towards the exit. “Martine! Do not let them leave this facility alive!” Greer orders from behind them. Two thuds causes them to turn their heads back briefly to see Special Counsel and the other ISA agent shot dead.

“Keep moving!” Hersh yells over the gunfire.

As they bolt out of the facility, shots ring out behind them.Taking cover behind a truck, John opens fire on the agents and lands two in the knees. They fall to the ground crying out as Shaw pulls up the van that they came in. The team rushes inside, avoiding more gunfire and they speed away to the airport.

* * *

“Shaw.” Control sneers. “Hersh,” she addresses more pleasantly.

“Ma’am.” Shaw mocks. “This jet is getting stuffy.” Shaw snidely remarks, helping sit a catatonic Root down on a couch. Shaw rummages through the jet’s med supplies and begins disinfecting her wound. Root doesn’t react, staring blankly at the floor.

“Special Counsel is dead. Killed by Decima.” Hersh reports.

“And the Machine?” Control asks.

“Under Decima’s control.” Hersh answers.

Control shakes her head, scowling. “Normally I’d have you all executed for treason, but I can’t afford to do that anymore. With the Machine under Decima’s control, they effectively hold the government hostage. I don’t trust those bastards and as unfortunate as this is, you’re the only ones I can trust now.”

“Why would you trust us?” Finch asks suspiciously, taking a seat next to Reese.

“Really?” Control scoffs. “Shaw, the man in the suit, and the Machine’s interface all working together. Too much to be a coincidence, don’t you think?” She reasons, “And that leaves you. The man in the shadows, orchestrating everything...You are the Machine’s creator. There’s no one more trustworthy than you.”

“Impressive deduction.” Finch acknowledges. “But we can’t help you. The Machine is gone. By now Decima would have moved it. There’s nothing we can do but live out the rest of our lives in secrecy.”

“There’s another machine.” Control reveals.

“What?” Finch asks, apparently unaware of its existence. Root snaps her head up and Shaw is relieved to see the life flow back in her eyes.

“We had two orders. After you finished yours the government shut the second one down. Samaritan, built by a man named Arthur Claypool.”

No one misses the way Finch reacts to the name. 

“Do you know him, Finch?” Reese asks.

“He was a friend of mine and Nathan’s in college.” Finch explains. “I had no idea he was building a machine of his own. Does anyone else know about this?”

Control shakes her head. “No. Just me.”

“We need to find Arthur before anyone else finds out.” Finch urges.

“We’re en route to him now. If you get Samaritan, can you use it to recover the Machine?”

“Yes.” Root answers in conviction. It’s time for a new God to enter the world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Super minor edit of the first chapter because I screwed up how long the Machine’s been with the government so I just adjusted Shaw’s years in the ISA from 6 to 3 (actual canon). Anyway...I’ve always wondered what would happen if the virus worked and Decima got control of the Machine. Then Team Machine would have to use Samaritan. Would Samaritan, under Root and Finch, be a “good” ASI?

**Author's Note:**

> I just wanted to write a Shoot AU where things in s2 went differently. I uh, kinda have an idea where I want this to go? LOL


End file.
